id
int64 39
11.1M
| section
stringlengths 3
4.51M
| length
int64 2
49.9k
| title
stringlengths 1
182
| chunk_id
int64 0
68
|
|---|---|---|---|---|
10,701 |
# Politics of the Faroe Islands
The **politics of the Faroe Islands**, an autonomous country (*land*) of the Kingdom of Denmark, function within the framework of a parliamentary, representative democratic dependency, whereby the Prime Minister of the Faroe Islands is the head of government, and of a multi-party system. The Faroe Islands are politically associated with the Kingdom of Denmark but have been self-governing since 1948. Executive power is exercised by the government. Legislative power is vested in both the government and the Løgting. The judiciary is independent of the executive and the legislature and the responsibility of Denmark.
## Executive branch {#executive_branch}
\|King \|Frederik X \| \|14 January 2024 \|- \|High Commissioner \|Lene Moyell Johansen \| \|15 May 2017 \|- \|Prime Minister \|Aksel V. Johannesen \|Social Democratic \|22 December 2022 \|}
The high commissioner is appointed by the Monarch of Denmark. The High Commissioner has a seat in the Løgting, with the ability to speak in the Løgting regarding common Danish/Faroese affairs, but is unable to vote. Following legislative elections, the leader of the party that wins the most seats is usually given the initiative to establish a new coalition by the Faroese Parliament, unless the current Løgmaður (*Prime Minister* in English) is still in power. However, if he or she fails, the chairman of the parliament asks all chairmen of the parties elected to the parliament, and asks them to point to another chairman who they feel can rightly form a new coalition. The chairman with the most votes is then handed the initiative. After forming the coalition, the Løgmaður leads the landsstýri. The landsstýri will often consist of around 7 members. The coalition parties divide the various ministries among themselves and after this, the parties elect their representative to these ministries. Any other member of the cabinet is called a *landsstýrismaður* if the person is a man, or *landsstýriskvinna* if the person is a woman. The word *ráðharri* is also used for a member of the cabinet, i.e. *mentamálaráðharri* (minister of culture) or *heilsumálaráðharri* (minister of health).
### Current government {#current_government}
Following the 2022 Faroese general election, a new government, consisting of three parties (Social Democratic Party, Republic, and Progress) under Prime Minister Aksel V. Johannesen was created.
## Legislative branch {#legislative_branch}
The **Faroese Parliament** (*Løgtingið in Faroese*) has 33 MPs (members of parliament), elected for a four-year term by proportional representation.
Election of 2 seats to the Danish Parliament was last held 31 October 2022: Social Democrat 1, Unionist 1.
## Political parties and elections {#political_parties_and_elections}
The Faroe Islands have a multi-party system (disputing on independence and unionism as well as left and right), with numerous parties in which no one party often has a chance of gaining power alone, and parties must work with each other to form coalition governments. The Faroese Parliament (Løgting) has 33 seats. Members are elected by popular vote to serve four-year terms. For the Løgting elections, there were seven electoral districts, each one comprehending a*sýslur*, while Streymoy is divided into northern and southern parts (Tórshavn region), but since 2008, the Faroes constitute a single district.
{{#section-h:2022 Faroese general election\|Results}}
## Administrative divisions {#administrative_divisions}
The islands are administratively divided into 29 municipalities with about 120 cities and villages.
Traditionally, there are also the 6 sýslur (Norðoyar, Eysturoy, Streymoy, Vágar, Sandoy, and Suðuroy). *Sýsla* means district and although it is only a police district today, it is still commonly understood as a geographical region. In earlier times, each sýsla had its own ting, the so-called *várting* (spring ting).
## International affairs {#international_affairs}
The nation continues to be intimately tied with the Nordic countries of Europe and the European Union. Along with diplomatic missions to Iceland, the Court of St. James\'s (United Kingdom), Russia, and the European Union, the Faroe Islands participate in the Nordic Council, NIB, International Maritime Organization, International Whaling Commission ([Complete list of participation of the Faroe Islands in international organisations](http://www.faroeislands.org.uk/Default.asp?d=8D6305E5-11A4-4D39-8262-8A7B41E1F330))
| 651 |
Politics of the Faroe Islands
| 0 |
10,704 |
# Transport in the Faroe Islands
The Faroe Islands is served by an internal transport system based on roads, ferries, and helicopters. As of the 1970s, the majority of the population centres of the Faroe Islands have been joined to a single road network, connected by bridges and tunnels.
International transport, both for passengers and freight, remains difficult due to high costs, long distances, and bad weather, especially during the winter. Exporting domestically produced goods is thus expensive; this limits the development of a commodity-based economy.
## History
The general history of the Faroese transportation system can be divided into four periods:
### Before 1900 {#before_1900}
During this first period, transportation was rather primitive; it consisted of row boats, walking, and, in certain places, horse transport (for the upper class). Boats were used for transport between villages, even on the same island, as land transport was difficult due to the steep mountains.
### 1900 to the end of World War II {#to_the_end_of_world_war_ii}
The second period commenced in the late-19th century, when ferry connections began to emerge. The ferries were largely private initiatives, but they increasingly came to be operated by the public sector. This was supplemented by an emerging culture of automobiles. After World War II, a large part of the Faroe Islands was accessible via ferries and automobiles; private buses and taxis operated as well.
### The end of World War II to the 1970s {#the_end_of_world_war_ii_to_the_1970s}
The third period was characterized by modernization. The introduction of the car ferry made it possible to drive between the various city centres of the country. It became possible to drive from the capital Tórshavn to Vágur and Tvøroyri in the south, to Fuglafjørður and Klaksvík in the north, and to the airport at Sørvágur in the west. Vágar Airport was built by the British during World War II; it was reopened as a civilian international airport in 1963. Additionally, the road network was further developed. Tunnels to distant valleys and firths such as Hvalba, Sandvík, and Norðdepil were constructed in the 1960s.
### 1970s onwards {#s_onwards}
The fourth period saw the emergence of a \"mainland\" thanks to tunnels and bridges. In 1973 the Streymin Bridge, the first bridge between two Faroese islands, was established between Norðskáli on Eysturoy and Nesvík on Streymoy; in 1976 the new tunnel between Norðskáli and Eysturoy was completed. The Faroes\' two largest islands were connected into what is now referred to as \"Meginlandið\", the Mainland. In 1975 the causeway between Viðoy and Borðoy was constructed, in 1986 a similar one between Borðoy and Kunoy was established, and in 1992 the capital Tórshavn was granted a first-class connection to the northern parts of the islands, creating the infrastructural prerequisites for a mobile society on the mainland.
The newest developments of the Faroese transportation network are the sub-sea tunnels. In 2002 the tunnel between Streymoy and Vágar---the latter is the airport island---was finished, and in 2006 the Norðoyatunnilin between Eysturoy and Borðoy was finished. A toll, payable at petrol stations, of 170 DKK (130 DKK in June 2013) is charged to drive through these two tunnels; the others are free. Now more than 85% of the Faroese population is accessible by automobile. On 19 December 2020 the Eysturoyartunnilin between Streymoy and Eysturoy opened for traffic.
#### Future
In early 2014 all political parties of the Løgting agreed to the construction of two tunnels: Eysturoyartunnilin, a tunnel connecting Eysturoy and Streymoy, which was completed in 2020, and Sandoyartunnilin, a tunnel connecting Streymoy and Sandoy, will be completed by 2023.`{{needs update|date=May 2025}}`{=mediawiki} The combined cost of the project is estimated at almost 3 billion DKK, and it will be the most expensive construction project in Faroese history. Eysturoyartunnilin has the world\'s first under-sea roundabout. Its three tubes are 7.1 km, 2.1 km and 1.8 km long, linked together by the roundabout. Sandoyartunnilin will be 10.6 km long.
There have been talks about a possible tunnel between Sandoy and Suðuroy. The tunnel would be around 20--25 km long. If completed this would mean that 99% of the Faroes would be connected by road.
## Railways
There are no passenger railways on the Faroe Islands due to the difficult landscape, small population, and relatively short distances.
Two railways have operated on the islands. A tunnel and rail system supplied a NATO radar installation, now decommissioned, which previously existed on a mountaintop in the southern part of Streymoy Island. The Gjógv incline railway operates a freight service between the harbour and the village of Gjógv on Eysturoy island.
| 754 |
Transport in the Faroe Islands
| 0 |
10,704 |
# Transport in the Faroe Islands
## Roads
`{{see also|List of tunnels of the Faroe Islands}}`{=mediawiki} Roads have become the main method of transportation on the islands, replacing boats. In 2021, there were 16,289 petrol cars, 9,795 diesel cars, and 567 electric cars. Google Street View became available for some roads in November 2017, supplied by residents and sheep rather than Google cars.
### Highways
*total:* 960 km
: *national highways:* 460 km
: *local roads:* 500 km
### Bus services {#bus_services}
The national bus network (*Bygdaleiðir*, Village routes) is operated by Strandfaraskip Landsins operating the characteristic blue buses. Most minibuses, buses and coaches in current service are built by either Volvo or Irisbus/Iveco. In 2024, they introduced their first Battery-Electric buses, the Iveco E-Way. The principal route is Tórshavn-Klaksvík (via the Norðoyatunnilin tunnel and Streymin Bridge). Although individual buses are generally owned by individuals or small companies, the timetables, fares, and levels of service are set by Strandfaraskip Landsins and the government.
The municipalities of Tórshavn, Klaksvík, Eysturkommuna and Sunda operate their own free-of-charge local services, usually referred to as *Bussleiðin*. Tórshavn\'s Bussleiðin has five routes and is operated by the Tórshavn municipality. Like Bygdaleiðir, the actual buses are privately owned, but contracted to Bussleiðin. Klaksvík\'s service commenced in 2014.
## Sea
### Ports and harbours {#ports_and_harbours}
- Tórshavn
- Klaksvík
- Tvøroyri
- Vágur
- Vestmanna
- Kollafjørður
- Runavík
- Fuglafjørður
- Krambatangi
- Gamlarætt
### Merchant marine {#merchant_marine}
*total:* 6 ships (`{{GT|1,000|metric|disp=long}}`{=mediawiki} or over) totaling `{{GT|22,853|metric}}`{=mediawiki}/`{{DWT|13,481|metric|disp=long}}`{=mediawiki} (1999 est.)
: *ships by type:*
- cargo ship 2,
- petroleum tanker 1,
- refrigerated cargo ship 1,
- roll-on/roll-off 1,
- short-sea passenger 1.
### Ferries
The Faroese ferry company Strandfaraskip Landsins operates a network of ferries, in addition to the rural blue buses, called Bygdaleiðir (Villagelines). Their largest vessel is the *Smyril*, a roll-on/roll-off ferry which maintains the link between Tórshavn and the southern island, Suðuroy. This vessel entered service in 2005. Another ferry, *Teistin*, a roll-on-off ferry, maintains the link between the island of Sandoy and Streymoy; the ferry port on Streymoy is at Gamlarætt near Kirkjubøur and Velbastaður on the south-west coast of Streymoy. A sub-sea tunnel is under construction between Sandoy and Streymoy, it will open in 2023 according to the plan. After that there will not be need of a ferry between the two islands. The proposed Suðuroyartunnilin would also remove the ferry services to Skúvoy and Suðuroy.
Since the early 1980s, Smyril Line has operated a regular international passenger, car and freight service using a large, modern, multipurpose ferry, the *Norröna*. The weekly service links the Faroe Islands with Seyðisfjörður, Iceland, and Hirtshals, Denmark.
## Air
*Main article: List of airports in the Faroe Islands* Atlantic Airways is the national airline of the Faroe Islands, and has its operating base at Vágar Airport. It operates regular flights to Iceland, Denmark, Norway, and Scotland while there are also seasonal flights connecting the Faroe Islands with destinations including Barcelona, Mallorca, Lisbon, and Stewart International Airport, New York.
Originally state-owned, the airline has been partially privatised. The Government has plans to continue selling its remaining share in the airline. As a private company, Atlantic Airways continues to provide the Faroe Islands search and rescue capability, under contract to the government.
### Airports
The Faroe Islands has only one commercial airport. Vágar Airport is located close to the village of Sørvágur, on the island of Vágar. It has a paved 1,799 m / 5,902 ft runway, and was originally built by British Royal Engineers during the Second World War. The main airlines operating regular scheduled flights are Atlantic Airways and Scandinavian Airlines. Other airlines operate charter flights.
### Heliports
Helicopters provide domestic scheduled transportation, medical evacuation, and search & rescue activities.
There are public (passenger and freight) heliports at Froðba, Hattarvík, Kirkja, Klaksvík, Mykines, Skúvoy, Stóra Dímun, Svínoy, and Tórshavn (Boðanes). There are air ambulance heliports at Skopun and Tórshavn (hospital)
| 655 |
Transport in the Faroe Islands
| 1 |
10,709 |
# Geography of Finland
The **geography of Finland** is characterized by its northern position, its ubiquitous landscapes of intermingled boreal forests and lakes, and its low population density. Finland can be divided into three areas: archipelagoes and coastal lowlands, a slightly higher central lake plateau and uplands to north and northeast. Bordering the Baltic Sea, Gulf of Bothnia, and Gulf of Finland, as well as Sweden to the west, Norway (one of Finland\'s non-EU neighbours) to the north, and Russia (another non-EU neighbour) to the east, Finland is the northernmost country in the European Union. Most of the population and agricultural resources are concentrated in the south. Northern and eastern Finland are sparsely populated containing vast wilderness areas. Taiga forest is the dominant vegetation type.
## Size and external boundaries {#size_and_external_boundaries}
Finland\'s total area is 337030 km2. Of this area 10% is water, 69% forest, 8% cultivated land and 13% other. Finland is the eighth largest country in Europe after Russia, Ukraine, France, Spain, Sweden, Norway and Germany.
As a whole, the shape of Finland\'s boundaries resembles a figure of a one-armed human. In Finnish, parallels are drawn between the figure and the national personification of Finland -- Finnish Maiden (*Suomi-neito*) -- and the country as a whole can be referred in the Finnish language by her name. Even in official context the area around Enontekiö in northwestern part of the country between Sweden and Norway can be referred to as the \"Arm\" (*käsivarsi*). After the Continuation War Finland lost major land areas to the Soviet Union in the Moscow Armistice of 1944, and the figure was said to have lost the other of her arms, as well as a hem of her \"skirt\".
| 284 |
Geography of Finland
| 0 |
10,709 |
# Geography of Finland
## Relief and geology {#relief_and_geology}
### Geology
The bedrock of Finland belong to the Baltic Shield and was formed by a succession of orogenies in Precambrian time. The oldest rocks of Finland, those of Archean age, are found in the east and north. These rocks are chiefly granitoids and migmatitic gneiss. Rocks in central and western Finland originated or came to place during the Svecokarelian orogeny. Following this last orogeny Rapakivi granites intruded various locations of Finland during the Mesoproterozoic and Neoproterozoic, specially at Åland and the southeast. So-called Jotnian sediments occur usually together with Rapakivi granites. The youngest rocks in Finland are those found in the northwestern arm which belong to Scandinavian Caledonides that assembled in Paleozoic times. During the Caledonian orogeny Finland was likely a sunken foreland basin covered by sediments, subsequent uplift and erosion would have eroded all of these sediments.
### Relief and hydrography {#relief_and_hydrography}
About one third of Finland lies below 100 m, and about two thirds lies under 200 m. Finland can be divided into three topographical areas; the coastal landscapes, the interior lake plateau also known as Finnish lake district and Upland Finland. The coastal landscapes are made up mostly of plains below 20 m. These plains tilt gently towards the sea so that where its irregularities surpasses sea-level groups of islands like the Kvarken Archipelago or the Åland Islands are found. Åland is connected to the Finnish mainland by a shallow submarine plateau that does not exceed 20 m in depth. Next to the Gulf of Bothnia the landscape of Finland is extremely flat with height differences no larger than 50 m. This region called the Ostrobothnian Plain extends inland about 100 km and constitute the largest plain in the Nordic countries.
The interior lake plateau is dominated by undulating hilly terrain with valley to top height differences of 100 or less and occasionally up to 200 m. Only the area around the lakes Pielinen and Päijänne stand with a subtly more pronounced relief. The relief of the interior lake plateau bears some resemblance to the Swedish Norrland terrain. Upland Finland and areas higher than 200 m are found mostly in the north and east of the country where hills and mountains exceed 500 m in height in these regions. Inselberg plains are common in the northern half of the country. In the northern region more known as Lapland, highest points reach mostly from 200 m to 600 m and the landscape is a förfjäll (fore-fell). However the most northern parts represent a more dramatic mountain landscape where the Halti fell represents a highest point (1361 m) in the country.
The subdued landscape of Finland is the result of protracted erosion that has leveled down ancient mountain massifs into near-flat landforms called peneplains. The last major leveling event resulted in the formation of the Sub-Cambrian peneplain in Late Neoproterozoic time. While Finland has remained very close to sea-level since the formation of this last peneplain some further relief was formed by a slight uplift resulting in the carving of valleys by rivers. The slight uplift also means that at parts the uplifted peneplain can be traced as summit accordances. The Quaternary ice ages resulted in the erosion of weak rock and loose materials by glaciers. When the ice masses retreated eroded depressions turned into lakes. Fractures in Finland\'s bedrock were particularly affected by weathering and erosion, leaving as result trace straight sea and lake inlets.
Except a few rivers along the coasts most rivers in Finland drain at some stage into one or more lakes. The drainage basins drain into various directions. Much of Finland drains into the Gulf of Bothnia including the country\'s largest and longest rivers, Kokemäenjoki and Kemijoki respectively. Finland\'s largest lake drains by Vuoksi River into Lake Ladoga in Russia. Upland Finland in the east drains east across Russian Republic of Karelia into the White Sea. In the northeast Lake Inari discharges by Paatsjoki into Barents Sea in the Arctic.
--------------------- -------------------------------
Year before present Deglaciated
12,700 Helsinki, Kotka
11,000 Turku, Kuopio
10,900 Jyväskylä, Mariehamn, Tampere
10,800 Lake Inari
10,700 All of Åland
10,500 Kajaani
10,300 Vasa, Oulu
10,200 Rovaniemi
10,100 Tornio
--------------------- -------------------------------
: Localities in Finland by approximate date of deglaciation
### Quaternary glaciation {#quaternary_glaciation}
The ice sheet that covered Finland intermittently during the Quaternary grew out from the Scandinavian Mountains. During the last deglaciation the first parts of Finland to become ice-free, the southeastern coast, did so slightly prior to the Younger Dryas cold-spell 12,700 years before present (BP). The retreat of the ice cover occurred simultaneously from the north-east, the east and southeast. The retreat was fastest from the southeast resulting in the lower course of Tornio being the last part of Finland to be deglaciated. Finally by 10,100 years BP the ice cover had all but left Finland to concentrate in Sweden and Norway before fading away.
As the ice sheet became thinner and retreated the land begun to rise by effect of isostacy. Much of Finland was under water when the ice retreated and was gradually uplifted in a process that continues today. Albeit not all areas were drowned at the same time it is estimated at time or another about 62% has been under water. Depending on location in Finland the ancient shoreline reached different maximum heights. In southern Finland 150 to 160 m, in central Finland about 200 m and in eastern Finland up to 220 m.
| 911 |
Geography of Finland
| 1 |
10,709 |
# Geography of Finland
## Climate
Latitude is the principal influence on Finland\'s climate. Because of Finland\'s northern location, winter is the longest season. Only in the south coast is summer as long as winter. On the average, winter lasts from early December to mid March in the archipelago and the southwestern coast and from early October to early May in Lapland. This means that southern portions of the country are snow-covered about three months of the year and the northern, about seven months. The long winter causes about half of the annual 500 to of precipitation in the north to fall as snow. Precipitation in the south amounts to about 600 to annually. Like that of the north, it occurs all through the year, though not so much of it is snow.
The Atlantic Ocean to the west and the Eurasian continent to the east interact to modify the climate of the country. The warm waters of the Gulf Stream and the North Atlantic Drift Current, which warm Norway and Sweden, also warm Finland. Westerly winds bring the warm air currents into the Baltic areas and to the country\'s shores, moderating winter temperatures, especially in the south. These winds, because of clouds associated with weather systems accompanying the westerlies, also decrease the amount of sunshine received during the summer. By contrast, the continental high pressure system situated over the Eurasian continent counteracts the maritime influences, occasionally causing severe winters and high temperatures in the summer.
The highest ever recorded temperature is 37.2 °C (Liperi, 29 July 2010). The lowest, −51.5 °C (Kittilä, 28 January 1999). The annual middle temperature is relatively high in the southwestern part of the country (5.0 to), with quite mild winters and warm summers, and low in the northeastern part of Lapland (0 to).
Temperature extremes for every month:
Extreme highs:
- January: +10.9 °C (January 6, 1973, Mariehamn Airport, Jomala, Åland)
- February: +11.8 °C (February 28, 1943, Ilmala, Helsinki, Uusimaa)
- March: +17.5 °C (March 27, 2007, Helsinki Airport, Vantaa, Uusimaa)
- April: +25.5 °C (April 27, 1921, Jyväskylä, Central Finland)
- May: +31.0 °C (May 30/31, 1995, Ingermaninkylä, Lapinjärvi, Uusimaa)
- June: +33.8 °C (June 24, 1934, Ähtäri, South Ostrobothnia)
- July: +37.2 °C (July 29, 2010, Joensuu Airport, Liperi, North Karelia)
- August: +33.8 °C (August 7, 2010, Heinola, Päijänne Tavastia, and Puumala, South Savo and August 8, 2010, Laune, Lahti, Päijänne Tavastia)
- September: +28.8 °C (September 6, 1968, Rauma, Satakunta)
- October: +21.1 °C (October 14, 2018, Oulu Airport, Oulu, North Ostrobothnia)
- November: +16.6 °C (November 6, 2020, Mariehamn Airport, Jomala, Åland)
- December: +11.3 °C (December 20, 2015, Kokemäki, Satakunta and Pori, Satakunta)
Extreme lows:
- January: −51.5 °C (January 28, 1999, Pokka, Kittilä, Lapland)
- February: −49.0 °C (February 5, 1912, Sodankylä, Lapland)
- March: −44.3 °C (March 1, 1971, Tuntsa, Salla, Lapland)
- April: −36.0 °C (April 2, 1912, Kuusamo, North Ostrobothnia and April 9, 1912, Sodankylä, Lapland)
- May: −24.6 °C (May 1, 1971, Kalmankaltio, Enontekiö, Lapland)
- June: −7.0 °C (June 3, 1962, Laanila, Inari, Lapland)
- July: −5.0 °C (July 12, 1958, Kilpisjärvi, Enontekiö, Lapland)
- August: −10.8 °C (August 26, 1980, Naruska, Salla, Lapland)
- September: −18.7 °C (September 26, 1968, Vuotso, Sodankylä, Lapland)
- October: −31.8 °C (October 25, 1968, Sodankylä, Lapland)
- November: −42.0 °C (November 30, 1915, Sodankylä, Lapland)
- December: −47.0 °C (December 21, 1919, Pielisjärvi, North Karelia)
| 571 |
Geography of Finland
| 2 |
10,709 |
# Geography of Finland
## Area and boundaries {#area_and_boundaries}
**Area:**\
*total:* 338145 km2\
*land:* 303815 km2\
*water:* 34330 km2
**Area -- comparative:** slightly smaller than Germany, Montana, and Newfoundland and Labrador
**Land boundaries:**\
*total:* 2563 km\
*border countries:* Norway 709 km, Sweden 545 km, Russia 1309 km
**Coastline:** 31.119 km
**Maritime claims:**\
*Territorial sea:* 12 nmi, 3 nmi in the Gulf of Finland; there is a stretch of international waters between Finnish and Estonian claims; Bogskär has separate internal waters and 3 nmi of territorial waters\
*Contiguous zone:* 24 nmi\
*Exclusive economic zone:* 87,171 km2; extends to continental shelf boundary with Sweden, Estonia, and Russia\
*Continental shelf:* 200 m depth or to the depth of exploitation
**Elevation extremes:**\
*lowest point:* Baltic Sea 0 m\
*highest point:* Haltitunturi 1328 m
## Environmental concerns {#environmental_concerns}
**Natural hazards:** Cold periods in winter pose a threat to the unprepared.
**Environment -- current issues:** Air pollution from manufacturing and power plants contributing to acid rain; water pollution from industrial wastes, agricultural chemicals; habitat loss threatens wildlife populations.
**Environment -- international agreements:**\
*party to:* Air Pollution, Air Pollution-Heavy Metals, Air Pollution-Multi-effect Protocol, Air Pollution-Nitrogen Oxides, Air Pollution-Persistent Organic Pollutants (signed 2001, ratified 2002), Air Pollution-Sulphur 85, Air Pollution-Sulphur 94, Air Pollution-Volatile Organic Compounds, Antarctic-Environmental Protection, Antarctic-Marine Living Resources, Antarctic Treaty, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol (signed May 1998, ratified together with 14 other EU countries May 31, 2002), Climate Change-Paris Agreement, Comprehensive Nuclear Test Ban, Desertification, Endangered Species, Environmental Modification, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping-London Convention, Marine Dumping-London Protocol, Marine Life Conservation, Nuclear Test Ban, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Tropical Timber 2006, Wetlands, Whaling.
## Other miscellaneous information {#other_miscellaneous_information}
- In Finland there are approximately 168,000 lakes of over 0.05 ha in size, and 57,000 of over 1 ha. A research project by National Land Survey of Finland is currently (2019) seeking to clarify the definition of \'lake\' and the number of lakes in Finland.
- The Finnish capital, Helsinki, is the northernmost capital city on the mainland of any continent, and ranks as second globally (the Icelandic capital Reykjavik takes the first place globally).
- At 1313 km, Finland has the second-longest border with Russia of any European country, surpassed only by Ukraine (1576 km).
- The third largest lake, Lake Inari in the Lapland province of extreme northern Finland, has a surface area of 1040.28 km2, a total shore length of 3308 km, a maximum depth of 92 m, some 3,318 islands, and a total water volume of 15.9 km3. Despite its size and numerous recreational opportunities, the lake is scarcely visited sheerly because of its 1100 km distance from Helsinki, and its daunting distance to other similarly populated areas in the south of the country
| 457 |
Geography of Finland
| 3 |
10,712 |
# Economy of Finland
The **economy of Finland** is a highly industrialised, mixed economy with a per capita output similar to that of western European economies such as France, Germany, and the United Kingdom. The largest sector of Finland\'s economy is its service sector, which contributes 72.7% to the country\'s gross domestic product (GDP); followed by manufacturing and refining at 31.4%; and the primary sector at 2.9%. Among OECD nations, Finland has a highly efficient and strong social security system; social expenditure stood at roughly 29% of GDP.
Finland\'s key economic sector is manufacturing. The largest industries are electronics (21.6% - very old data), machinery, vehicles and other engineered metal products (21.1%), forest industry (13.1%), and chemicals (10.9%). Finland has timber and several mineral and freshwater resources. Forestry, paper factories, and the agricultural sector (on which taxpayers spend around 2 billion euro annually) are politically sensitive to rural residents. The Helsinki metropolitan area generates around a third of GDP.
In a 2004 OECD comparison, high-technology manufacturing in Finland ranked second largest in the world, after Ireland. Investment was below the expected levels. The overall short-term outlook was good and GDP growth has been above many of its peers in the European Union. Finland has the 4th largest knowledge economy in Europe, behind Sweden, Denmark and the UK. The economy of Finland tops the ranking of the Global Information Technology 2014 report by the World Economic Forum for concerted output between the business sector, the scholarly production and the governmental assistance on information and communications technology.
Finland is highly integrated in the global economy, and international trade represents a third of the GDP. Trade with the European Union represents 60% of the country\'s total trade. The largest trade flows are with Germany, Russia, Sweden, the United Kingdom, the United States, the Netherlands and China. The trade policy is managed by the European Union, where Finland has traditionally been among the free trade supporters, except for agriculture. Finland is the only Nordic country to have joined the Eurozone; Denmark and Sweden have retained their traditional currencies, whereas Iceland and Norway are not members of the EU at all. Finland has been ranked seventh in the Global Innovation Index of 2023, making it the seventh most innovative country down from 2nd in 2018.
| 380 |
Economy of Finland
| 0 |
10,712 |
# Economy of Finland
## History
Being geographically distant from Western and Central Europe in relation to other Nordic countries, Finland struggled behind in terms of industrialization apart from the production of paper, which partially replaced the export of timber solely as a raw material towards the end of the nineteenth century. But as a relatively poor country, it was vulnerable to shocks to the economy such as the great famine of 1867--1868, which killed around 15% of the country\'s population. Until the 1930s, the Finnish economy was predominantly agrarian and, as late as the 1950s, more than half the population and 40% of output were still in the primary sector.
### After World War II {#after_world_war_ii}
While nationalization committees were set up in France and the United Kingdom, Finland avoided nationalizations. Finnish industry recovered quickly after the Second World War. By the end of 1946, industrial output had surpassed pre-war numbers. In the immediate post-war period of 1946 to 1951, Finnish industry continued to grow rapidly. Many factors contributed to the rapid industrial growth. War reparations were largely paid in manufactured products. The devaluation of currency in 1945 and 1949, which made the US dollar rise by 70% against the Finnish markka, and thus boosted exports to the West. This helped with rebuilding the country and increased demand for Finnish industrial products. In 1951, the Korean War boosted Finnish exports. Finland practiced an active exchange rate policy. Devaluation was used several times to raise the competitiveness of the Finnish exporting industries.
Between 1950 and 1975, Finland\'s industry was at the mercy of international economic trends. The fast industrial growth in 1953-1955 was followed by a period of more moderate growth, starting in 1956. The causes for the deceleration of growth were the general strike of 1956, as well as weakened export trends and easing of the strict regulation of Finland\'s foreign trade in 1957. These events compelled Finnish industry to compete against ever toughening international challengers. An economic recession brought industrial output down by 3.4% in 1958. Industry, however, recovered quickly during the international economic boom that followed the recession. One reason for this was the devaluation of the Finnish markka, which increased the value of the US dollar by 39% against the Finnish markka.
The international economy was stable in the 1960s. This trend can be seen in Finland as well, where steady growth of industrial output could be seen throughout the decade.
After failed experiments with protectionism, Finland eased some restrictions and signed a free trade agreement with the European Community in 1973. This made Finnish markets more competitive.
Finland\'s industrial output declined in 1975. The decline was caused by the free trade agreement that was made between Finland and the European Community in 1973. The agreement subjected Finnish industry to ever toughening international competition. Finnish exports to the west decreased. In 1976 and 1977, the growth in industrial output was almost zero. In 1978, it swung back towards a strong growth. In 1978 and 1979, Finnish industrial output grew at an above average rate. The stimuli for this were three devaluations of Finnish markka, which lowered value of the markka by a total of 19%. Impacts from the global 1979 oil crisis on Finnish industry were alleviated by Finland\'s bilateral trade with the Soviet Union.
Local education markets expanded. An increasing number of Finns went to study abroad in the United States and in Western Europe. These students later returned to Finland, bringing back useful and advanced professional skills. There was quite a common pragmatic credit and investment cooperation between the state and Finnish corporations. It raised suspicion in the populace, due to support for capitalism and free trade from the populace. However, the Finnish communist party (Finnish People\'s Democratic League) received 23.2% of the votes in the 1958 parliamentary elections. Savings rates in Finland hovered among the world\'s highest, at around 8%, all the way to the 1980s. In the beginning of the 1970s, Finland\'s GDP per capita reached the level of Japan and the UK. Finland\'s economic development was similar to some export-led Asian countries. The official policy of neutrality enabled Finland to trade both with Western and Comecon markets. Significant bilateral trade was conducted with the Soviet Union, but this was not allowed to grow into a dependence.
### Liberalization
Like other Nordic countries, Finland has liberalized its system of economic regulation since late 1980s. The financial and product market regulations were modified. Some state enterprises were privatized and some tax rates were altered. In 1991, the Finnish economy fell into a severe recession. This was caused by a combination of economic overheating (largely due to a change in the banking laws in 1986 which made credit much more accessible), depressed markets with key trading partners (particularly the Swedish and Soviet markets), as well as in the local markets. Slow growth with other trading partners, and the disappearance of the Soviet bilateral trade had its effects. The stock market and the Finnish housing market decreased by 50% in value. The growth in the 1980s was based on debt, and when the defaults began rolling in, GDP declined by 13%. Unemployment increased from almost full employment to one fifth of the workforce. The crisis was amplified by the trade unions\' initial opposition to any reforms. Politicians struggled to cut spending and the public debt doubled to around 60% of GDP. Much of the economic growth in the 1980s was based on debt financing. Debt defaults led to a savings and loan crisis. Over 10 billion euros were used to bail out failing banks, which led to a banking sector consolidation. After devaluations, the depression bottomed out in 1993.
| 944 |
Economy of Finland
| 1 |
10,712 |
# Economy of Finland
## History
### European Union {#european_union}
Finland joined the European Union in 1995. The central bank was given an inflation-targeting mandate until Finland joined the euro zone. The growth rate has since been one of the highest of the OECD countries. Finland has topped many indicators of national performance.
Finland was one of the 11 countries joining the third phase of the Economic and Monetary Union of the European Union. Finland adopted the euro as the country\'s currency on 1 January 1999. The national currency markka (FIM) was withdrawn from circulation, and replaced by the euro (EUR) at the beginning of 2002.
| 106 |
Economy of Finland
| 2 |
10,712 |
# Economy of Finland
## Data
The following table shows the main economic indicators in 1980--2017. Inflation under 2% is in green. Estimates begin after 2021.
+------+----------------+-----------------+------------------------+----------------------------+-------------+-----------------+---------------+------------------+
| Year | GDP\ | GDP per capita\ | GDP (in Bil. US\$ PPP) | GDP (in Bil. US\$ nominal) | GDP growth\ | Inflation rate\ | Unemployment\ | Government debt\ |
| | (in Bil. Euro) | (in Euro) | | | (real) | (in%) | (in%) | (in % of GDP) |
+======+================+=================+========================+============================+=============+=================+===============+==================+
| 1980 | 33.7 | 7,059 | 45.5 | 53.7 | 5.7% | 11.6% | 5.3% | 10.9% |
+------+----------------+-----------------+------------------------+----------------------------+-------------+-----------------+---------------+------------------+
| 1981 | 38.1 | 7,957 | 50.5 | 52.6 | 1.3% | 12.0% | 5.7% | 11.5% |
+------+----------------+-----------------+------------------------+----------------------------+-------------+-----------------+---------------+------------------+
| 1982 | 42.8 | 8,901 | 55.3 | 53.1 | 3.1% | 9.3% | 6.1% | 13.9% |
+------+----------------+-----------------+------------------------+----------------------------+-------------+-----------------+---------------+------------------+
| 1983 | 47.8 | 9,870 | 59.2 | 51.0 | 3.1% | 8.4% | 6.1% | 15.4% |
+------+----------------+-----------------+------------------------+----------------------------+-------------+-----------------+---------------+------------------+
| 1984 | 54.5 | 10,986 | 63.3 | 53.0 | 3.2% | 7.0% | 5.9% | 15.2% |
+------+----------------+-----------------+------------------------+----------------------------+-------------+-----------------+---------------+------------------+
| 1985 | 58.3 | 11,910 | 67.6 | 56.2 | 3.5% | 5.8% | 6.0% | 15.8% |
+------+----------------+-----------------+------------------------+----------------------------+-------------+-----------------+---------------+------------------+
| 1986 | 62.7 | 12,776 | 70.9 | 73.7 | 2.7% | 2.9% | 6.7% | 16.4% |
+------+----------------+-----------------+------------------------+----------------------------+-------------+-----------------+---------------+------------------+
| 1987 | 67.8 | 13,755 | 75.2 | 91.8 | 3.6% | 4.1% | 4.9% | 17.6% |
+------+----------------+-----------------+------------------------+----------------------------+-------------+-----------------+---------------+------------------+
| 1988 | 76.8 | 15,542 | 81.9 | 109.3 | 5.2% | 5.1% | 4.2% | 16.5% |
+------+----------------+-----------------+------------------------+----------------------------+-------------+-----------------+---------------+------------------+
| 1989 | 85.9 | 17,344 | 89.5 | 119.1 | 5.1% | 6.6% | 3.1% | 14.3% |
+------+----------------+-----------------+------------------------+----------------------------+-------------+-----------------+---------------+------------------+
| 1990 | 91.0 | 18,296 | 93.0 | 141.7 | 0.7% | 5.0% | 3.2% | 13.8% |
+------+----------------+-----------------+------------------------+----------------------------+-------------+-----------------+---------------+------------------+
| 1991 | 87.0 | 17,398 | 90.5 | 128.2 | −5.9% | 4.5% | 6.7% | 21.8% |
+------+----------------+-----------------+------------------------+----------------------------+-------------+-----------------+---------------+------------------+
| 1992 | 84.9 | 16,873 | 89.5 | 113.1 | −3.3% | 3.3% | 11.8% | 39.3% |
+------+----------------+-----------------+------------------------+----------------------------+-------------+-----------------+---------------+------------------+
| 1993 | 85.7 | 16,963 | 91.0 | 89,3 | −0.7% | 3.3% | 16.5% | 54.1% |
+------+----------------+-----------------+------------------------+----------------------------+-------------+-----------------+---------------+------------------+
| 1994 | 90.8 | 17,875 | 96.7 | 103.7 | 3.9% | 1.6% | 16.7% | 56.1% |
+------+----------------+-----------------+------------------------+----------------------------+-------------+-----------------+---------------+------------------+
| 1995 | 98.6 | 19,329 | 102.9 | 134.3 | 4.2% | 0.4% | 15.5% | 55.1% |
+------+----------------+-----------------+------------------------+----------------------------+-------------+-----------------+---------------+------------------+
| 1996 | 102.1 | 19,946 | 108.6 | 132.2 | 3.7% | 1.0% | 14.6% | 55.3% |
+------+----------------+-----------------+------------------------+----------------------------+-------------+-----------------+---------------+------------------+
| 1997 | 110.7 | 21,577 | 117.5 | 127.1 | 6.3% | 1.2% | 12.7% | 52.2% |
+------+----------------+-----------------+------------------------+----------------------------+-------------+-----------------+---------------+------------------+
| 1998 | 120.4 | 23,387 | 125.3 | 134.2 | 5.4% | 1.3% | 11.5% | 46.9% |
+------+----------------+-----------------+------------------------+----------------------------+-------------+-----------------+---------------+------------------+
| 1999 | 126.9 | 24,599 | 132.6 | 135.4 | 4.4% | 1.3% | 10.3% | 44.0% |
+------+----------------+-----------------+------------------------+----------------------------+-------------+-----------------+---------------+------------------+
| 2000 | 136.3 | 26,349 | 143.4 | 126.1 | 5.6% | 3.0% | 9.9% | 42.5% |
+------+----------------+-----------------+------------------------+----------------------------+-------------+-----------------+---------------+------------------+
| 2001 | 144.4 | 27,878 | 150.5 | 129.5 | 2.6% | 2.7% | 9.2% | 40.9% |
+------+----------------+-----------------+------------------------+----------------------------+-------------+-----------------+---------------+------------------+
| 2002 | 148.3 | 28,545 | 155.4 | 140.3 | 1.7% | 2.0% | 9.2% | 40.2% |
+------+----------------+-----------------+------------------------+----------------------------+-------------+-----------------+---------------+------------------+
| 2003 | 151.6 | 29,112 | 161.7 | 171.7 | 2.0% | 1.3% | 9.1% | 42.7% |
+------+----------------+-----------------+------------------------+----------------------------+-------------+-----------------+---------------+------------------+
| 2004 | 158.5 | 30,361 | 172.6 | 197.4 | 3.9% | 0.1% | 8.9% | 42.6% |
+------+----------------+-----------------+------------------------+----------------------------+-------------+-----------------+---------------+------------------+
| 2005 | 164.4 | 31,392 | 183.0 | 205.0 | 2.8% | 0.8% | 8.5% | 39.9% |
+------+----------------+-----------------+------------------------+----------------------------+-------------+-----------------+---------------+------------------+
| 2006 | 172.6 | 32,844 | 196.3 | 217.1 | 4.1% | 1.3% | 7.8% | 38.1% |
+------+----------------+-----------------+------------------------+----------------------------+-------------+-----------------+---------------+------------------+
| 2007 | 186.6 | 35,358 | 212.2 | 256.4 | 5.2% | 1.6% | 7.0% | 34.0% |
+------+----------------+-----------------+------------------------+----------------------------+-------------+-----------------+---------------+------------------+
| 2008 | 193.7 | 36,545 | 218.0 | 285.7 | 0.7% | 3.9% | 6.4% | 32.6% |
+------+----------------+-----------------+------------------------+----------------------------+-------------+-----------------+---------------+------------------+
| 2009 | 181.0 | 33,988 | 201.7 | 253.2 | −8.3% | 1.6% | 8.3% | 41.7% |
+------+----------------+-----------------+------------------------+----------------------------+-------------+-----------------+---------------+------------------+
| 2010 | 187.1 | 34,962 | 210.6 | 249.6 | 3.0% | 1.8% | 8.5% | 47.1% |
+------+----------------+-----------------+------------------------+----------------------------+-------------+-----------------+---------------+------------------+
| 2011 | 196.9 | 36,625 | 220.5 | 275,6 | 2.6% | 3.3% | 7.8% | 48.5% |
+------+----------------+-----------------+------------------------+----------------------------+-------------+-----------------+---------------+------------------+
| 2012 | 199.8 | 36,990 | 221.3 | 258.5 | −1.4% | 3.2% | 7.7% | 53.9% |
+------+----------------+-----------------+------------------------+----------------------------+-------------+-----------------+---------------+------------------+
| 2013 | 203.3 | 37,470 | 225.7 | 271.4 | −0.8% | 2.2% | 8.2% | 56.5% |
+------+----------------+-----------------+------------------------+----------------------------+-------------+-----------------+---------------+------------------+
| 2014 | 205.5 | 37,693 | 228.1 | 274.9 | −0.6% | 1.2% | 8.7% | 60.2% |
+------+----------------+-----------------+------------------------+----------------------------+-------------+-----------------+---------------+------------------+
| 2015 | 209.6 | 38,307 | 232.9 | 234.6 | 0.1% | 0.2% | 9.4% | 63.6% |
+------+----------------+-----------------+------------------------+----------------------------+-------------+-----------------+---------------+------------------+
| 2016 | 215.8 | 39,322 | 246.9 | 240.7 | 2.1% | 0.4% | 8.8% | 63.0% |
+------+----------------+-----------------+------------------------+----------------------------+-------------+-----------------+---------------+------------------+
| 2017 | 224.3 | 40,753 | 262.1 | 255.6 | 3.0% | 0.8% | 8.7% | 61.4% |
+------+----------------+-----------------+------------------------+----------------------------+-------------+-----------------+---------------+------------------+
| 2018 | 226.8 | 41,142 | 271.4 | 275.8 | 1.1% | 1.2% | 7.4% | 64.8% |
+------+----------------+-----------------+------------------------+----------------------------+-------------+-----------------+---------------+------------------+
| 2019 | 229.6 | 41,609 | 279.7 | 268.6 | 1.2% | 1.1% | 6.7% | 64.9% |
+------+----------------+-----------------+------------------------+----------------------------+-------------+-----------------+---------------+------------------+
| 2020 | 224.2 | 40,576 | 276.7 | 271.7 | -2.2% | 0.4% | 7.8% | 74.7% |
+------+----------------+-----------------+------------------------+----------------------------+-------------+-----------------+---------------+------------------+
| 2021 | 231.0 | 41,748 | 298.3 | 297.0 | 2.9% | 2.1% | 7.6% | 72.6% |
+------+----------------+-----------------+------------------------+----------------------------+-------------+-----------------+---------------+------------------+
| 2022 | 235.8 | 42,507 | 324.3 | 283.1 | n/a | 7.2% | 6.8% | 74.8% |
+------+----------------+-----------------+------------------------+----------------------------+-------------+-----------------+---------------+------------------+
| 2023 | 235.9 | 42,510 | 335.8 | 305.7 | n/a | 5.3% | 7.5% | 74.4% |
+------+----------------+-----------------+------------------------+----------------------------+-------------+-----------------+---------------+------------------+
| 2024 | 238.9 | 43,053 | 347.0 | 316.3 | n/a | 2.5% | 7.5% | 75.9% |
+------+----------------+-----------------+------------------------+----------------------------+-------------+-----------------+---------------+------------------+
| 2025 | 242.1 | 43,621 | 358.7 | 327.6 | n/a | 2.2% | 7.4% | 77.8% |
+------+----------------+-----------------+------------------------+----------------------------+-------------+-----------------+---------------+------------------+
| 2026 | 245.3 | 44,221 | 371.4 | 339.9 | n/a | 2.0% | 7.3% | 79.5% |
+------+----------------+-----------------+------------------------+----------------------------+-------------+-----------------+---------------+------------------+
| 2027 | 248.4 | 44,802 | 384.3 | 351.1 | n/a | 2.0% | 7.2% | 80.9% |
+------+----------------+-----------------+------------------------+----------------------------+-------------+-----------------+---------------+------------------+
| 2028 | 251.5 | 45,390 | 397.8 | 362.8 | n/a | 2.0% | 7.1% | 82.1% |
+------+----------------+-----------------+------------------------+----------------------------+-------------+-----------------+---------------+------------------+
| 1,062 |
Economy of Finland
| 3 |
10,712 |
# Economy of Finland
## Agriculture
Finland\'s climate and soils make growing crops a particular challenge. The country lies between 60° and 70° north latitude - as far north as Alaska - and has severe winters and relatively short growing seasons that are sometimes interrupted by frosts. However, because the Gulf Stream and the North Atlantic Drift Current moderate the climate, and because of the relatively low elevation of the land area, Finland contains half of the world\'s arable land north of 60° north latitude. In response to the climate, farmers have relied on quick-ripening and frost-resistant varieties of crops. Most farmland had originally been either forest or swamp, and the soil had usually required treatment with lime and years of cultivation to neutralise excess acid and to develop fertility. Irrigation was generally not necessary, but drainage systems were often needed to remove excess water.
Until the late nineteenth century, Finland\'s isolation required that most farmers concentrate on producing grains to meet the country\'s basic food needs. In the fall, farmers planted rye; in the spring, southern and central farmers started oats, while northern farmers seeded barley. Farms also grew small quantities of potatoes, other root crops, and legumes. Nevertheless, the total area under cultivation was still small. Cattle grazed in the summer and consumed hay in the winter. Essentially self-sufficient, Finland engaged in very limited agricultural trade.
This traditional, almost autarkic, production pattern shifted sharply during the late nineteenth century, when inexpensive imported grain from Russia and the United States competed effectively with local grain. At the same time, rising domestic and foreign demand for dairy products and the availability of low-cost imported cattle feed made dairy and meat production much more profitable. These changes in market conditions induced Finland\'s farmers to switch from growing staple grains to producing meat and dairy products, setting a pattern that persisted into the late 1980s.
In response to the agricultural depression of the 1930s, the government encouraged domestic production by imposing tariffs on agricultural imports. This policy enjoyed some success: the total area under cultivation increased, and farm incomes fell less sharply in Finland than in most other countries. Barriers to grain imports stimulated a return to mixed farming, and by 1938 Finland\'s farmers were able to meet roughly 90% of the domestic demand for grain.
The disruptions caused by the Winter War and the Continuation War caused further food shortages, especially when Finland ceded territory, including about one-tenth of its farmland, to the Soviet Union. The experiences of the depression and the war years persuaded the Finns to secure independent food supplies to prevent shortages in future conflicts.
After the war, the first challenge was to resettle displaced farmers. Most refugee farmers were given farms that included some buildings and land that had already been in production, but some had to make do with \"cold farms,\" that is, land not in production that usually had to be cleared or drained before crops could be sown. The government sponsored large-scale clearing and draining operations that expanded the area suitable for farming. As a result of the resettlement and land-clearing programs, the area under cultivation expanded by about 450,000 hectares, reaching about 2.4 million hectares by the early 1960s. Finland thus came to farm more land than ever before, an unusual development in a country that was simultaneously experiencing rapid industrial growth.
During this period of expansion, farmers introduced modern production practices. The widespread use of modern inputs---chemical fertilisers and insecticides, agricultural machinery, and improved seed varieties---sharply improved crop yields. Yet the modernisation process again made farm production dependent on supplies from abroad, this time on imports of petroleum and fertilisers. By 1984 domestic sources of energy covered only about 20% of farm needs, while in 1950 domestic sources had supplied 70% of them. In the aftermath of the oil price increases of the early 1970s, farmers began to return to local energy sources such as firewood. The existence of many farms that were too small to allow efficient use of tractors also limited mechanisation. Another weak point was the existence of many fields with open drainage ditches needing regular maintenance; in the mid-1980s, experts estimated that half of the cropland needed improved drainage works. At that time, about 1 million hectares had underground drainage, and agricultural authorities planned to help install such works on another million hectares. Despite these shortcomings, Finland\'s agriculture was efficient and productive---at least when compared with farming in other European countries.
| 743 |
Economy of Finland
| 4 |
10,712 |
# Economy of Finland
## Agriculture
### Forestry
Forests play a key role in the country\'s economy, making it one of the world\'s leading wood producers and providing raw materials at competitive prices for the crucial wood processing industries. As in agriculture, the government has long played a leading role in forestry, regulating tree cutting, sponsoring technical improvements, and establishing long-term plans to ensure that the country\'s forests continue to supply the wood-processing industries.
Finland\'s wet climate and rocky soils are ideal for forests. Tree stands do well throughout the country, except in some areas north of the Arctic Circle. In 1980 the forested area totaled about 19.8 million hectares, providing 4 hectares of forest per capita---far above the European average of about 0.5 hectares. The proportion of forest land varied considerably from region to region. In the central lake plateau and in the eastern and northern provinces, forests covered up to 80% of the land area, but in areas with better conditions for agriculture, especially in the southwest, forests accounted for only 50 to 60% of the territory. The main commercial tree species---pine, spruce, and birch---supplied raw material to the sawmill, pulp, and paper industries. The forests also produced sizable aspen and elder crops.
The heavy winter snows and the network of waterways were used to move logs to the mills. Loggers were able to drag cut trees over the winter snow to the roads or water bodies. In the southwest, the sledding season lasted about 100 days per year; the season was even longer to the north and the east. The country\'s network of lakes and rivers facilitated log floating, a cheap and rapid means of transport. Each spring, crews floated the logs downstream to collection points; tugs towed log bundles down rivers and across lakes to processing centers. The waterway system covered much of the country, and by the 1980s Finland had extended roadways and railroads to areas not served by waterways, effectively opening up all of the country\'s forest reserves to commercial use.
Forestry and farming were closely linked. During the twentieth century, government land redistribution programmes had made forest ownership widespread, allotting forestland to most farms. In the 1980s, private farmers controlled 35% of the country\'s forests; other persons held 27%; the government, 24%; private corporations, 9%; and municipalities and other public bodies, 5%. The forestlands owned by farmers and by other people---some 350,000 plots---were the best, producing 75 to 80% of the wood consumed by industry; the state owned much of the poorer land, especially that in the north.
The ties between forestry and farming were mutually beneficial. Farmers supplemented their incomes with earnings from selling their wood, caring for forests, or logging; forestry made many otherwise marginal farms viable. At the same time, farming communities maintained roads and other infrastructure in rural areas, and they provided workers for forest operations. Indeed, without the farming communities in sparsely populated areas, it would have been much more difficult to continue intensive logging operations and reforestation in many prime forest areas.
The Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry has carried out forest inventories and drawn up silvicultural plans. According to surveys, between 1945 and the late 1970s foresters had cut trees faster than the forests could regenerate them. Nevertheless, between the early 1950s and 1981, Finland was able to boost the total area of its forests by some 2.7 million hectares and to increase forest stands under 40 years of age by some 3.2 million hectares. Beginning in 1965, the country instituted plans that called for expanding forest cultivation, draining peatland and waterlogged areas, and replacing slow-growing trees with faster-growing varieties. By the mid-1980s, the Finns had drained 5.5 million hectares, fertilized 2.8 million hectares, and cultivated 3.6 million hectares. Thinning increased the share of trees that would produce suitable lumber, while improved tree varieties increased productivity by as much as 30%.
Comprehensive silvicultural programmes had made it possible for the Finns simultaneously to increase forest output and to add to the amount and value of the growing stock. By the mid-1980s, Finland\'s forests produced nearly 70 million cubic meters of new wood each year, considerably more than was being cut. During the postwar period, the annual cut increased by about 120% to about 50 million cubic meters. Wood burning fell to one-fifth the level of the immediate postwar years, freeing up wood supplies for the wood-processing industries, which consumed between 40 million and 45 million cubic meters per year. Indeed, industry demand was so great that Finland needed to import 5 million to 6 million cubic meters of wood each year.
To maintain the country\'s comparative advantage in forest products, Finnish authorities moved to raise lumber output toward the country\'s ecological limits. In 1984 the government published the Forest 2000 plan, drawn up by the Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry. The plan aimed at increasing forest harvests by about 3% per year, while conserving forestland for recreation and other uses. It also called for enlarging the average size of private forest holdings, increasing the area used for forests, and extending forest cultivation and thinning. If successful, the plan would make it possible to raise wood deliveries by roughly one-third by the end of the twentieth century. Finnish officials believed that such growth was necessary if Finland was to maintain its share in world markets for wood and paper products.
| 893 |
Economy of Finland
| 5 |
10,712 |
# Economy of Finland
## Industry
Since the 1990s, Finnish industry, which for centuries had relied on the country\'s vast forests, has become increasingly dominated by electronics and services, as globalization led to a decline of more traditional industries. Outsourcing resulted in more manufacturing being transferred abroad, with Finnish-based industry focusing to a greater extent on R&D and hi-tech electronics.
### Electronics
The Finnish electronics and electrotechnics industry relies on heavy investment in R&D, and has been accelerated by the liberalisation of global markets. Electrical engineering started in the late 19th century with generators and electric motors built by Gottfried Strömberg, now part of the ABB. Other Finnish companies -- such as Instru, Vaisala and Neles (now part of Metso) - have succeeded in areas such as industrial automation, medical and meteorological technology. Nokia was once a world leader in mobile telecommunications.
### Metals, engineering and manufacturing {#metals_engineering_and_manufacturing}
Finland has an abundance of minerals, but many large mines have closed down, and most raw materials are now imported. For this reason, companies now tend to focus on high added-value processing of metals. The exports include steel, copper, chromium, gold, zinc and nickel, and finished products such as steel roofing and cladding, welded steel pipes, copper pipe and coated sheets. Outokumpu is known for developing the flash smelting process for copper production and stainless steel.
In 2019, the country was the world\'s 5th largest producer of chromium, the 17th largest world producer of sulfur and the 20th largest world producer of phosphate
With regard to vehicles, the Finnish motor industry consists mostly of manufacturers of tractors (Valtra, formerly Valmet tractor), forest machines (f.ex. Ponsse), military vehicles (Sisu, Patria), trucks (Sisu Auto), buses and Valmet Automotive, a contract manufacturer, whose factory in Uusikaupunki produces Mercedes-Benz cars. Shipbuilding is an important industry: the world\'s largest cruise ships are built in Finland; also, the Finnish company Wärtsilä produces the world\'s largest diesel engines and has market share of 47%. In addition, Finland also produces train rolling stock.
The manufacturing industry is a significant employer of about 400,000 people.
### Mining
- Ahmavaara mine (Gold, copper, nickel)
- Koivu mine (Titanium)
- Konttijärvi mine (Gold, copper, nickel)
- Mustavaara mine (Vanadium)
- Portimo mine (Gold)
- Siilinjärvi mine (Phosphates)
- Suhanko mine (Gold, copper, nickel)
### Chemical industry {#chemical_industry}
The chemical industry is one of the Finland\'s largest industrial sectors with its roots in tar making in the 17th century. It produces an enormous range of products for the use of other industrial sectors, especially for forestry and agriculture. In addition, its produces plastics, chemicals, paints, oil products, pharmaceuticals, environmental products, biotech products and petrochemicals. In the beginning of this millennium, biotechnology was regarded as one of the most promising high-tech sectors in Finland. In 2006 it was still considered promising, even though it had not yet become \"the new Nokia\".
### Pulp and paper industry {#pulp_and_paper_industry}
Forest products has been the major export industry in the past, but diversification and growth of the economy has reduced its share. In the 1970s, the pulp and paper industry accounted for half of Finnish exports. Although this share has shrunk, pulp and paper is still a major industry, with 52 sites across the country. Several of large international corporations in this business are based in Finland. Stora Enso and UPM were placed No. 1 and No. 3 by output in the world, both producing more than ten million tons. M-real and Myllykoski also appear on the top 100 list.
### Energy industry {#energy_industry}
Finland\'s energy supply is divided as follows: nuclear power 26%, net imports 20%, hydroelectric power 16%, combined production district heat 18%, combined production industry 13%, condensing power 6%. One half of all the energy consumed in Finland goes to industry, one fifth to heating buildings and one fifth to transport. Lacking indigenous fossil fuel resources, Finland has been an energy importer. This might change in the future since Finland is currently building its fifth nuclear reactor, and approved building permits for its sixth and seventh ones. There are some uranium resources in Finland, but to date no commercially viable deposits have been identified for exclusive mining of uranium. However, permits have been granted to Talvivaara to produce uranium from the tailings of their nickel-cobalt mine.
| 711 |
Economy of Finland
| 6 |
10,712 |
# Economy of Finland
## Companies
Notable companies in Finland include Nokia, the former market leader in mobile telephony; Stora Enso, the largest paper manufacturer in the world; Neste Oil, an oil refining and marketing company; UPM-Kymmene, the third largest paper manufacturer in the world; Aker Finnyards, the manufacturer of the world\'s largest cruise ships (such as Royal Caribbean\'s *Freedom of the Seas*); Rovio Mobile, video game developer most notable for creating Angry Birds; KONE, a manufacturer of elevators and escalators; Wärtsilä, a producer of power plants and ship engines; and Finnair, the largest Helsinki-Vantaa based international airline. Additionally, many Nordic design firms are headquartered in Finland. These include the Fiskars owned Iittala Group, Artek a furniture design firm co-created by Alvar Aalto, and Marimekko made famous by Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis. Finland has sophisticated financial markets comparable to the UK in efficiency. Though foreign investment is not as high as some other European countries, the largest foreign-headquartered companies included names such as ABB, Tellabs, Carlsberg and Siemens.
Around 70-80% of the equity quoted on the Helsinki Stock Exchange are owned by foreign-registered entities. The larger companies get most of their revenue from abroad, and the majority of their employees work outside the country. Cross-shareholding has been abolished and there is a trend towards an Anglo-Saxon style of corporate governance. However, only around 15% of residents have invested in stock market, compared to 20% in France, and 50% in the US.
Between 2000 and 2003, early stage venture capital investments relative to GDP were 8.5% against 4% in the EU and 11.5 in the US. Later stage investments fell to the EU median. Invest in Finland and other programs attempt to attract investment. In 2000 FDI from Finland to overseas was 20 billion euro and from overseas to Finland 7 billion euro. Acquisitions and mergers have internationalized business in Finland.
Although some privatization has been gradually done, there are still several state-owned companies of importance. The government keeps them as strategic assets or because they are natural monopoly. These include e.g. Neste (oil refining and marketing), VR (rail), Finnair, VTT (research) and Posti Group (mail). Depending on the strategic importance, the government may hold either 100%, 51% or less than 50% stock. Most of these have been transformed into regular limited companies, but some are quasi-governmental (*liikelaitos*), with debt backed by the state, as in the case of VTT.
In 2022, the sector with the highest number of companies registered in Finland is Services with 191,796 companies followed by Finance, Insurance, and Real Estate and Agriculture, Forestry, and Fishing with 159,158 and 102,452 companies respectively.
| 434 |
Economy of Finland
| 7 |
10,712 |
# Economy of Finland
## Household income and consumption {#household_income_and_consumption}
Finland\'s income is generated by the approximately 1.8 million private sector workers, who make an average 25.1 euro per hour (before the median 60% tax wedge) in 2007. According to a 2003 report, residents worked on average around 10 years for the same employer and around 5 different jobs over a lifetime. 62% worked for small and medium-sized enterprises. Female employment rate was high and gender segregation on career choices was higher than in the US. In 1999 part-time work rate was one of the smallest in OECD.
Future liabilities are dominated by the pension deficit. Unlike in Sweden, where pension savers can manage their investments, in Finland employers choose a pension fund for the employee. The pension funding rate is higher than in most Western European countries, but still only a portion of it is funded and pensions exclude health insurances and other unaccounted promises. Directly held public debt has been reduced to around 32% in 2007. In 2007, the average household savings rate was -3.8 and household debt 101% of annual disposable income, a typical level in Europe.
In 2008, the OECD reported that \"the gap between rich and poor has widened more in Finland than in any other wealthy industrialised country over the past decade\" and that \"Finland is also one of the few countries where inequality of incomes has grown between the rich and the middle-class, and not only between rich and poor.\"
In 2006, there were 2,381,500 households of average size 2.1 people. Forty% of households consisted of single person, 32% two and 28% three or more. There were 1.2 million residential buildings in Finland and the average residential space was 38 square metres per person. The average residential property (without land) cost 1,187 euro per square metre and residential land on 8.6 euro per square metre. Consumer energy prices were 8-12 euro cent per kilowatt hour. 74% of households had a car. There were 2.5 million cars and 0.4 other vehicles. Around 92% have mobile phones and 58% Internet connection at home. The average total household consumption was 20,000 euro, out of which housing at around 5500 euro, transport at around 3000 euro, food and beverages excluding alcoholic at around 2500 euro, recreation and culture at around 2000 euro. Upper-level white-collar households (409,653) consumed an average 27,456 euro, lower-level white-collar households (394,313) 20,935 euro, and blue-collar households (471,370) 19,415 euro.
## Unemployment
The unemployment rate was 10.3% in 2015. The employment rate is (persons aged 15--64) 66.8%. Unemployment security benefits for those seeking employment are at an average OECD level. The labor administration funds labour market training for unemployed job seekers, the training for unemployed job seeker can last up to 6 months, which is often vocational. The aim of the training is to improve the channels of finding employment.
| 476 |
Economy of Finland
| 8 |
10,712 |
# Economy of Finland
## Gross domestic product {#gross_domestic_product}
### Euro Membership {#euro_membership}
The American economist and *The New York Times* columnist Paul Krugman has suggested that the short term costs of euro membership to the Finnish economy outweigh the large gains caused by greater integration with the European economy. Krugman notes that Sweden, which has yet to join the single currency, had similar rates of growth compared to Finland for the period since the introduction of the euro.
Membership of the euro protects Finland from currency fluctuations, which is particularly important for small member states of the European Union like Finland that are highly integrated into the larger European economy. If Finland had retained its own currency, unpredictable exchange rates would prevent the country from selling its products at competitive prices on the European market. In fact, business leaders in Sweden, which is obliged to join the euro when its economy has converged with the eurozone, are almost universal in their support for joining the euro. Although Sweden\'s currency is not officially pegged to the euro like Denmark\'s currency the Swedish government maintains an unofficial peg. This exchange rate policy has in the short term benefited the Swedish economy in two ways; (1) much of Sweden\'s European trade is already denominated in euros and therefore bypasses any currency fluctuation and exchange rate losses, (2) it allows Sweden\'s non-euro-area exports to remain competitive by dampening any pressure from the financial markets to increase the value of the currency.
Maintaining this balance has allowed the Swedish government to borrow on the international financial markets at record low interest rates and allowed the Swedish central bank to quantitatively ease into a fundamentally sound economy. This has led Sweden\'s economy to prosper at the expense of less sound economies who have been impacted by the 2008 financial crisis. Sweden\'s economic performance has therefore been slightly better than Finland\'s since the 2008 financial crisis. Much of this disparity has, however, been due to the economic dominance of Nokia, Finland\'s largest company and Finland\'s only major multinational. Nokia supported and greatly benefited from the euro and the European single market, particularly from a common European digital mobile phone standard (GSM), but it failed to adapt when the market shifted to mobile computing.
One reason for the popularity of the euro in Finland is the memory of a \'great depression\' which began in 1990, with Finland not regaining it competitiveness until approximately a decade later when Finland joined the single currency. Some American economists like Paul Krugman claim not to understand the benefits of a single currency and allege that poor economic performance is the result of membership of the single currency. These economists do not, however, advocate separate currencies for the states of the United States, many of which have quite disparate economies.
| 468 |
Economy of Finland
| 9 |
10,712 |
# Economy of Finland
## Public policy {#public_policy}
Finnish politicians have often emulated other Nordics and the Nordic model. Nordic\'s have been free-trading and relatively welcoming to skilled migrants for over a century, though in Finland immigration is a relatively new phenomenon. This is due largely to Finland\'s less hospitable climate and the fact that the Finnish language shares roots with none of the major world languages, making it more challenging than average for most to learn. The level of protection in commodity trade has been low, except for agricultural products.
As an economic environment, Finland\'s judiciary is efficient and effective. Finland is highly open to investment and free trade. Finland has top levels of economic freedom in many areas, although there is a heavy tax burden and inflexible job market. Finland is ranked 16th (ninth in Europe) in the 2008 Index of Economic Freedom. Recently, Finland has topped the patents per capita statistics, and overall productivity growth has been strong in areas such as electronics. While the manufacturing sector is thriving, OECD points out that the service sector would benefit substantially from policy improvements. The IMD World Competitiveness Yearbook 2007 ranked Finland 17th most competitive, next to Germany, and lowest of the Nordics. while the World Economic Forum report has ranked Finland the most competitive country. Finland is one of the most fiscally responsible EU countries. According to the grand jury of the 2006 European Enterprise Awards, effective \"entrepreneurial thinking\" was held to be at the root of central Finland\'s position as \"the most entrepreneur-friendly region in the world\".
### Product market {#product_market}
Economists attribute much growth to reforms in the product markets. According to OECD, only four EU-15 countries have less regulated product markets (UK, Ireland, Denmark and Sweden) and only one has less regulated financial markets (Denmark). Nordic countries were pioneers in liberalising energy, postal, and other markets in Europe. The legal system is clear and business bureaucracy less than most countries. For instance, starting a business takes an average of 14 days, compared to the world average of 43 days and Denmark\'s average of 6 days. Property rights are well protected and contractual agreements are strictly honored. Finland is rated one of the least corrupted countries in Corruption Perceptions Index. Finland is rated 13th in the Ease of Doing Business Index. It indicates exceptional ease to trade across borders (5th), enforce contracts (7th), and close a business (5th), and exceptional hardship to employ workers (127th) and pay taxes (83rd).
### Job market {#job_market}
According to the OECD, Finland\'s job market is the least flexible of the Nordic countries. Finland increased job market regulation in the 1970s to provide stability to manufacturers. In contrast, during the 1990s, Denmark liberalised its job market, Sweden moved to more decentralised contracts, whereas Finnish trade unions blocked many reforms. Many professions have legally recognized industry-wide contracts that lay down common terms of employment including seniority levels, holiday entitlements, and salary levels, usually as part of a Comprehensive Income Policy Agreement. Those who favor less centralized labor market policies consider these agreements bureaucratic, inflexible, and along with tax rates, a key contributor to unemployment and distorted prices. Centralized agreements may hinder structural change as there are fewer incentives to acquire better skills, although Finland already enjoys one of the highest skill-levels in the world.
| 552 |
Economy of Finland
| 10 |
10,712 |
# Economy of Finland
## Taxation
Tax is collected mainly from municipal income tax, state income tax, state value added tax, customs fees, corporate taxes and special taxes. There are also property taxes, but municipal income tax pays most of municipal expenses. Taxation is conducted by a state agency, Verohallitus, which collects income taxes from each paycheck, and then pays the difference between tax liability and taxes paid as tax rebate or collects as tax arrears afterward. Municipal income tax is a flat tax of nominally 15-20%, with deductions applied, and directly funds the municipality (a city or rural locality). The state income tax is a progressive tax; low-income individuals do not necessarily pay any. The state transfers some of its income as state support to municipalities, particularly the poorer ones. Additionally, the state churches - Finnish Evangelical Lutheran Church and Finnish Orthodox Church - are integrated to the taxation system in order to tax their members.
The middle income worker\'s tax wedge is 46% and effective marginal tax rates are very high. Value-added tax is 24% for most items. Capital gains tax is 30-34% and corporate tax is 20%, about the EU median. Property taxes are low, but there is a transfer tax (1.6% for apartments or 4% for individual houses) for home buyers. There are high excise taxes on alcoholic beverages, tobacco, automobiles and motorcycles, motor fuels, lotteries, sweets and insurances. For instance, McKinsey estimates that a worker has to pay around 1600 euro for another\'s 400 euro service - restricting service supply and demand - though some taxation is avoided in the black market and self-service culture. Another study by Karlson, Johansson & Johnsson estimates that the fraction of the buyer\'s income entering the service vendor\'s wallet (inverted tax wedge) is slightly over 15%, compared to 10% in Belgium, 25% in France, 40% in Switzerland and 50% in the United States.`{{Update after|2010|11}}`{=mediawiki} Tax cuts have been in every post-depression government\'s agenda and the overall tax burden is now around 43% of GDP compared to 51.1% in Sweden, 34.7% in Germany, 33.5% in Canada, and 30.5% in Ireland.
High income workers, for instance someone making €10000/month gross, living in the city of Vantaa and using €3000/year on commuting to work, pay 33% income tax plus 7.94% social security payments (this varies mildly depending on the age of the worker, but for someone born in 1975, it is currently in the year 2024, 7.94%). This means that 40,94% of the gross income goes to taxes and tax like payments.
State and municipal politicians have struggled to cut their consumption, which is very high at 51.7% of GDP compared to 56.6% in Sweden, 46.9% in Germany, 39.3% in Canada, and 33.5% in Ireland. Much of the taxes are spent on public sector employees, which amount to 124,000 state employees and 430,000 municipal employees. That is 113 per 1000 residents (over a quarter of workforce) compared to 74 in the US, 70 in Germany, and 42 in Japan (8% of workforce). The Economist Intelligence Unit\'s ranking for Finland\'s e-readiness is high at 13th, compared to 1st for United States, 3rd for Sweden, 5th for Denmark, and 14th for Germany. Also, early and generous retirement schemes have contributed to high pension costs. Social spending such as health or education is around OECD median. Social transfers are also around OECD median. In 2001 Finland\'s outsourced proportion of spending was below Sweden\'s and above most other Western European countries. Finland\'s health care is more bureaucrat-managed than in most Western European countries, though many use private insurance or cash to enjoy private clinics. Some reforms toward more equal marketplace have been made in 2007--2008. In education, child nurseries, and elderly nurseries private competition is bottom-ranking compared to Sweden and most other Western countries. Some public monopolies such Alko remain, and are sometimes challenged by the European Union. The state has a programme where the number of jobs decreases by attrition: for two retirees, only one new employee is hired.
| 664 |
Economy of Finland
| 11 |
10,712 |
# Economy of Finland
## Occupational and income structure {#occupational_and_income_structure}
Finland\'s export-dependent economy continuously adapted to the world market; in doing so, it changed Finnish society as well. The prolonged worldwide boom, beginning in the late 1940s and lasting until the first oil crisis in 1973, was a challenge that Finland met and from which it emerged with a highly sophisticated and diversified economy, including a new occupational structure. Some sectors kept a fairly constant share of the work force. Transportation and construction, for example, each accounted for between 7 and 8% in both 1950 and 1985, and manufacturing\'s share rose only from 22 to 24%. However, both the commercial and the service sectors more than doubled their share of the work force, accounting, respectively, for 21 and 28% in 1985. The greatest change was the decline of the economically active population employed in agriculture and forestry, from approximately 50% in 1950 to 10% in 1985. The exodus from farms and forests provided the labour power needed for the growth of other sectors.
Studies of Finnish mobility patterns since World War II have confirmed the significance of this exodus. Sociologists have found that people with a farming background were present in other occupations to a considerably greater extent in Finland than in other West European countries. Finnish data for the early 1980s showed that 30 to 40% of those in occupations not requiring much education were the children of farmers, as were about 25% in upper-level occupations, a rate two to three times that of France and noticeably higher than that even of neighboring Sweden. Finland also differed from the other Nordic countries in that the generational transition from the rural occupations to white-collar positions was more likely to be direct, bypassing manual occupations.
The most important factor determining social mobility in Finland was education. Children who attained a higher level of education than their parents were often able to rise in the hierarchy of occupations. In the Helsinki Metropolitan Area, those who are more educated, in the long-run, will move to newer centrally located buildings. A tripling or quadrupling in any one generation of the numbers receiving schooling beyond the required minimum reflected the needs of a developing economy for skilled employees. Obtaining advanced training or education was easier for some than for others, however, and the children of white-collar employees still were more likely to become white-collar employees themselves than were the children of farmers and blue-collar workers. In addition, children of white-collar professionals were more likely than not to remain in that class.
The economic transformation also altered income structure. A noticeable shift was the reduction in wage differentials. The increased wealth produced by an advanced economy was distributed to wage earners via the system of broad income agreements that evolved in the postwar era. Organized sectors of the economy received wage hikes even greater than the economy\'s growth rate. As a result, blue-collar workers\' income came, in time, to match more closely the pay of lower level white-collar employees, and the income of the upper middle class declined in relation to that of other groups.
The long trend of growth in living standards paired with diminishing differences between social classes was dramatically reversed during the 1990s. For the first time in the history of Finland income differences have sharply grown. This change has been mostly driven by the growth of income from capital to the wealthiest segment of the population
| 574 |
Economy of Finland
| 12 |
10,713 |
# Telecommunications in Finland
**Telecommunications in Finland**, as indicated by a 2022 European Commission index, highlight the country\'s significant role in the EU\'s digital sector. Finland has a high concentration of Information and Communication Technology (ICT) specialists and robust training programs, leading to notable expertise in technologies like AI and cloud computing. The nation has also made significant advancements in 5G technology. Additionally, Finland stands out for its high adoption of digital public services. The Finnish digital sector benefits from both the technology industry\'s contributions and government policies aimed at enhancing digital infrastructure and cybersecurity.
## Internet and digital progress {#internet_and_digital_progress}
### Fixed broadband {#fixed_broadband}
In the European Commission\'s 2022 Digital Economy and Society Index (DESI) report, Finland is ranked 8th in connectivity among 27 EU countries, but it faces challenges in its digital infrastructure. Fixed broadband adoption stands at 61%, below the EU average of 78%. Very High Capacity Network (VHCN) coverage is 68%, slightly lower than the EU\'s 70%, with rural areas affected, having only 12.4% VHCN coverage. Fiber to the Premises (FTTP) coverage is at 40%, compared to the EU average of 50%. To address these issues, the Finnish government plans to expand VHCN coverage through national broadband and digital infrastructure initiatives. Despite funding challenges, the government allocated EUR 16 million from the European Agricultural Fund for Rural Development (EAFRD) in 2021 for fiber network development.
### Mobile broadband {#mobile_broadband}
Finland\'s mobile broadband performance is strong, with 72% 5G coverage, surpassing the EU average of 66%, and a 96% mobile broadband adoption rate, exceeding the EU average of 87%. This achievement can be attributed to extensive 4G and 5G availability, covering 72% of populated areas. The early allocation of 5G pioneer bands (700 MHz in 2016, 3.6 GHz in 2018, and 26 GHz in 2020) has played a key role in achieving this widespread coverage. Recent frequency usage changes near Russia are expected to further improve 5G services in those regions.
### Integration of digital technology {#integration_of_digital_technology}
The country ranks at the forefront of digital technology integration within the EU. Notably, 82% of Finnish small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) exhibit basic digital intensity, higher than the EU average of 55%. Finland distinguishes itself in the adoption of advanced technologies, with 22% using big data, 66% of companies utilizing cloud solutions, and 16% implementing artificial intelligence (AI)---figures that are higher than the EU averages of 14%, 34%, and 8%, respectively. Further, 83% of Finnish companies have adopted e-invoices in contrast to the EU\'s average of 32%. On the aspect of ICT for environmental sustainability, 77% of Finnish enterprises report medium or high intensity of green action through ICT, which exceeds the EU average of 66%.
### Digital public services {#digital_public_services}
Finland has established itself as a leader in digital public services within the EU, as evidenced by the DESI 2022 report, which notes that 92% of Finnish internet users engage with e-government services compared to the EU average of 65%. This high level of engagement is attributed to Finland\'s progress in digital services, as seen in the My Kanta portal, which promotes digital health by providing citizens with secure access to their medical records and health services online.
In the areas of open data and artificial intelligence (AI), Finland achieves scores of 90 and 93 out of 100 for providing digital services to citizens and businesses, respectively, surpassing the EU averages of 75 and 82. An example of Finland\'s application of AI to enhance public services is the AuroraAI program, which is designed to facilitate personalized access to a range of public services. Additionally, Finland is enhancing its digital identity infrastructure to offer a secure, unified electronic identification system, improving access to digital services across sectors. The Ministerial Working Group on \"Digitalisation, Data Economy, and Public Administration\" is tasked with both advancing and safeguarding Finland\'s digital framework, which includes a focus on cybersecurity.
## Telephones
Telephones -- main lines in use: 2.368 million (2004)
Telephones -- mobile cellular: 4.988 million (2004)
Telephone system: General Assessment: Modern system with excellent service.
Domestic: Digital fiber-optic fixed-line network and an extensive cellular network provide domestic needs. There are three major cellular network providers with independent networks (Elisa Oyj, Telia Finland and DNA Oyj). There are several smaller providers which may have independent networks in smaller areas, but are generally dependent on rented networks. There is a great variety of cellular providers and contracts, and competition is particularly fierce.
International: Country code -- 358; 2 submarine cable (Finland-Estonia and Finland-Sweden Connection); satellite earth stations -- access to Intelsat transmission service via a Swedish satellite earth station, 1 Inmarsat (Atlantic and Indian Ocean regions); note -- Finland shares the Inmarsat earth station with the other Nordic countries (Denmark, Iceland, Norway, and Sweden).
| 789 |
Telecommunications in Finland
| 0 |
10,713 |
# Telecommunications in Finland
## Radio and television {#radio_and_television}
There is a national public radio and television company Yleisradio (Yle), which was previously funded by television license fees, but nowadays via the YLE tax. and two major private media companies, Alma Media and Sanoma, with national TV channels. Yle maintains four TV channels YLE1, YLE2, Teema and FST5. There are four commercial, national channels: Alma Media has MTV3 and SubTV, and Sanoma has Nelonen and Jim. There are also a lot of pay-TV channels. News Corporation introduced itself to the market in 2012 with the Fox channel, which was preceded by Finnish-owned SuomiTV.
### Radio broadcast stations {#radio_broadcast_stations}
AM 2, FM 186, shortwave 1 (1998)
### Television broadcast stations {#television_broadcast_stations}
120 (plus 431 repeaters) (1999)
Television is broadcast as digital (DVB-T) only since August 2007. On cable, only digital (DVB-C) will be broadcast from 2008 on
| 146 |
Telecommunications in Finland
| 1 |
10,714 |
# Transport in Finland
The **transport system of Finland** is well-developed. Factors affecting traffic include the sparse population and long distance between towns and cities, and the cold climate with waterways freezing and land covered in snow for winter.
The extensive road system is utilized by most internal cargo and passenger traffic. `{{As of|2010}}`{=mediawiki}, the country\'s network of main roads has a total length of around 78162 km and all public roads 104161 km. The motorway network totals 779 km with additional 124 km reserved only for motor traffic. Road network expenditure of around €1 billion is paid with vehicle and fuel taxes that amount to around €1.5 billion and €1 billion, respectively.
The main international passenger gateway is Helsinki-Vantaa Airport with over 20 million passengers in 2018. About 25 airports have scheduled passenger services. They are financed by competitive fees and rural airport may be subsidized. The Helsinki-Vantaa based Finnair (known for an Asia-focused strategy), Nordic Regional Airlines provide air services both domestically and internationally. Helsinki has an optimal location for great circle routes between Western Europe and the Far East. Hence, many international travelers visit Helsinki on a stop-over between Asia and Europe.
Despite low population density, taxpayers spend annually around €350 million in maintaining 5865 km railway tracks even to many rural towns. Operations are privatized and currently the only operator is the state-owned VR. It has 5 percent passenger market share (out of which 80 percent are urban trips in Greater Helsinki) and 25 percent cargo market share. Helsinki has an urban rail network.
Icebreakers keep the 23 ports open all year round. There is passenger traffic from Helsinki and Turku, which have ferry connections to Tallinn, Mariehamn, Sweden and several other destinations.
| 287 |
Transport in Finland
| 0 |
10,714 |
# Transport in Finland
## Roads
Road transport in Finland is the most popular method of transportation, particularly in rural areas where the railway network does not extend to. `{{As of|2011}}`{=mediawiki} there are 78162 km of public roads, of which 51016 km are paved. The main road network comprises over 13329 km of road.
### Highways
64% of all traffic on public roads takes place on main roads, which are divided into class I (**valtatie*/*riksväg**) and class II (**kantatie*/*stamväg**) main roads. Motorways have been constructed in the country since the 1960s, but they are still reasonably rare because traffic volumes are not large enough to motivate their construction. There are 863 km of motorways. Longest stretches are Helsinki--Turku (Main road 1/E18), Vantaa--Ylöjärvi (Main road 3/E12), Helsinki--Heinola (Main road 4/E75), and Helsinki--Vaalimaa (Main road 7/E18). The world\'s northernmost motorway is also located in Finland between Keminmaa and Tornio (Main road 29/E8).
There are no toll roads in Finland.
### Speed limits {#speed_limits}
Speed limits change depending on the time of the year; the maximum speed limit on motorways is 120 km/h in the summer and 100 km/h in the winter. The main roads usually have speed limits of either 100 km/h or 80 km/h. Speed limits in urban areas range between 30 km/h and 60 km/h. If no other speed limit is signposted, the general speed limit in Finland is 50 km/h in built-up areas and 80 km/h outside.
### Vehicles
, there are 4,95 million registered automobiles, of which 2,58 million cars. Average age of cars (museum cars excluded) is 12,5 years (in some regions even 15 years), and typically the cars are destroyed in age of 24 years. In 2015, ca. 123 000 new vehicles were registered in Finland. About 550,000--600,000 used automobiles are sold each year in Finland. During 2011--2014 the most sold car brand was Volkswagen. It had a market share of 12% of new cars.
### Public transport {#public_transport}
Coaches are mainly operated by private companies and provide services widely across the country. There is a large network of ExpressBus services with connections to all major cities and the most important rural areas as well as a burgeoning OnniBus \'cheap bus\' network. Coach stations are operated by Matkahuolto.
Local bus services inside cities and towns have often been tightly regulated by the councils. Many councils also have their own bus operators, such as Tampere City Transit (TKL), which operates some bus lines on a commercial basis in competition with privately owned providers. Regional bus lines have been regulated by the provincial administration to protect old transit companies, leading to cartel situations like TLO in the Turku region, but strong regional regulating bodies, like the Helsinki Regional Transport Authority (HSL/HRT), whose routes are put out to tender exist as well and will become the norm after the transitional period during the 2010s.
### Accidents
In 2015, number of road traffic accidents involving personal injury was 5,164. In them, 266 persons were killed. The number of road deaths per million inhabitants is just below the European average. Traffic safety has improved significantly since the early 1970s, when more than one thousand people died in road traffic every year.
### Parking
Municipal law 30-31 § gives right to Referendum since year 1990. Citizens of Turku collected 15,000 names in one month for referendum against the underground car park. Politicians with in the elections unknown financing from the parking company neglected the citizens opinion. According to International Association of Public Transport UITP parking places are among the most effective ways to promote private car use in the city. Therefore, many European cities have cancelled the expensive underground car parking after the 1990s. The EU recommended actions cover develop guidance for concrete measures for the internalisation of external costs for car traffic also in urban areas. In Finland the shops routinely offer free parking for private cars.
## Cycling
In Finland, 13% of the population reports cycling as their primary form of transportation. In 2016, the first bicycle-sharing system, Helsinki City Bikes, opened in Finland.
| 674 |
Transport in Finland
| 1 |
10,714 |
# Transport in Finland
## Rail transport {#rail_transport}
### Railways
*Main article: Rail transport in Finland* The Finnish railway network consists of a total of 5919 km of railways built with `{{RailGauge|1524mm|allk=on}}`{=mediawiki}. 3072 km of track is electrified. In 2010, passengers made 13.4 million long-distance voyages and 55.5 million trips in local traffic. On the same year, over 35000000 t of freight were transported.
Finland\'s first railway was opened between Helsinki and Hämeenlinna in 1862, and today it forms part of the Finnish Main Line (*päärata*), which is more than 800 kilometers long. Nowadays, passenger trains are operated by the state-owned VR. They serve all the major cities and many rural areas, complemented by bus connections where needed. Most passenger train services originate or terminate at Helsinki Central railway station, and a large proportion of the passenger rail network radiates out of Helsinki. High-speed Pendolino services are operated from Helsinki to other major cities like Jyväskylä, Joensuu, Kuopio, Oulu, Tampere and Turku. Modern InterCity services complement the Pendolino network, and cheaper and older long and short-distance trains operate in areas with fewer passengers.
The Helsinki area has three urban rail systems: a tramway, a metro, and a commuter rail system. Light rail systems are currently being planned for Helsinki and also for Turku and Tampere, two of the country\'s other major urban centres.
### Metro
The Helsinki metro is a 43-kilometer broad-gauge metro system that connects the center of Helsinki with the eastern districts and the western Espoo. The capital region has the northernmost metro system in the world and the only one in Finland. The Helsinki metro was opened on August 2, 1982, initially between Rautatientori and Itäkeskus. On November 18, 2017, Länsimetro extended the metro lines from the inner city to the west, via Lauttasaari to Tapiola and Matinkylä, and on December 3, 2022, all the way to Kivenlahti.
### High-speed rail {#high_speed_rail}
There are plans to link Helsinki to Turku and Tampere by high-speed lines resulting in journey times of an hour between the capital and the two cities. A link to Kouvola is also planned. The estimated cost of these lines is €10 billion.
### Trams and light rail {#trams_and_light_rail}
In Finland there have been two cities with trams: Helsinki and Tampere. Of the older systems only Helsinki has retained its tramway network. The trams in Viipuri, having been lost to Soviet Union in 1945, ceased operations in 1957, while the Turku tramway network shut down in 1972.
In November 2016, Tampere city council approved the construction of a new light rail system. Construction of phase 1 begun late 2016 and finished in 2021. Tampere trams are already operating but the official opening date is 9 August 2021. Turku also has preliminary plans for new tram system, but no decision to build it has been made.
Helsinki currently operates 10 tramlines on a network of approximately 90 km of track in passenger service. The trams have annually 57 million passengers.
Image:Artic (tram) in Helsinki.jpg\|New Škoda Artic tram in Helsinki ForCity Smart Artic X54 in Helsinki city centre, 2021 November.jpg\|NewThe Artic XL tram in Helsinki Raitiovaunu Hämeenkadulla.jpg\|New Škoda Artic tram in Tampere Kakola Funicular 3.jpg\|Funicular in Turku
## Air transport {#air_transport}
There are 148 airfields, 74 of which have paved runways. 21 airports are served by scheduled passenger flights. By far the largest airport is Helsinki-Vantaa Airport, and the second largest by passenger volume is Oulu Airport. The larger airports are managed by the state-owned Finavia (formerly the Finnish Civil Aviation Administration). Finnair, Nordic Regional Airlines and Norwegian Air Shuttle are the main carriers for domestic flights.
Helsinki-Vantaa airport is Finland\'s global gateway with scheduled non-stop flights to such places as Bangkok, Beijing, Guangzhou, Nagoya, New York, Osaka, Shanghai, Hong Kong and Tokyo. Helsinki has an optimal location for great circle airline traffic routes between Western Europe and the Far East. The airport is located approximately 19 kilometers north of Helsinki\'s downtown in the city of Vantaa, thus the name Helsinki-Vantaa.
Other airports with regular scheduled international connections are Kokkola-Pietarsaari Airport, Mariehamn Airport, Tampere-Pirkkala Airport, Turku Airport and Vaasa Airport.
| 683 |
Transport in Finland
| 2 |
10,714 |
# Transport in Finland
## Water transport {#water_transport}
The Finnish Maritime Administration is responsible for the maintenance of Finland\'s waterway network. Finland\'s waterways includes some 7600 km of coastal fairways and 7900 km of Finland waterways (on rivers, canals, and lakes). Saimaa Canal connects Lake Saimaa, and thus much of the inland waterway system of Finland, with the Baltic Sea at Vyborg (Viipuri). However, the lower part of the canal is currently located in Russia. To facilitate through shipping, Finland leases the Russian section of the canal from Russia (the original agreement with the Soviet Union dates to 1963).
The largest general port is Port of Hamina-Kotka. Port of Helsinki is the busiest passenger harbour, and it also has significant cargo traffic. By cargo tons, the five busiest ports are Hamina-Kotka, Helsinki, Rauma, Kilpilahti and Naantali.
Icebreakers keep 23 ports open for traffic even in winter. The ports in Gulf of Bothnia need icebreakers in average six months a year, while in Gulf of Finland icebreakers are needed for three months a year.
Frequent ferry service connects Finland with Estonia and Sweden. Baltic cruise liners regularly call on the port of Helsinki as well. In domestic service, ferries connect Finland\'s islands with the mainland. Finland\'s cargo ports move freight both for Finland\'s own needs and for transshipment to Russia.
### Waterways and canals {#waterways_and_canals}
Finland\'s canals are primarily located in inland waters. The canals of the Finnish sea area are mostly made for small boating. In terms of water traffic, a significant reason for canalization has been floating operations. For water management, canals have been built especially for Log driving and hydropower projects.
In order to lower and drain Lake Pohjalanjärvi, the depression of Rautajoki was deepened by canalization. The Finnish Waterways Association was founded in 1981 to promote the development of waterways and the construction of canals
| 308 |
Transport in Finland
| 3 |
10,722 |
# Telecommunications in France
**Telecommunications in France** are highly developed. France is served by an extensive system of automatic telephone exchanges connected by modern networks of fiber-optic cable, coaxial cable, microwave radio relay, and a domestic satellite system; cellular telephone service is widely available, expanding rapidly, and includes roaming service to foreign countries.
## Fixed-line telephony {#fixed_line_telephony}
The telephony system employs an extensive system of modern network elements such as digital telephone exchanges, mobile switching centres, media gateways and signalling gateways at the core, interconnected by a wide variety of transmission systems using fibre-optics or Microwave radio relay networks. The access network, which connects the subscriber to the core, is highly diversified with different copper-pair, optic-fibre and wireless technologies. The fixed-line telecommunications market is dominated by the former state-owned monopoly France Telecom.
**Telephones -- main lines in use:** 36.441 million; 35.5 million (metropolitan France) (2009)
**Telephones -- mobile cellular:** 60.95 million; 59.543 million (metropolitan France) (2009)
### International connection {#international_connection}
Satellite earth stations -- 2 Intelsat (with total of 5 antennas -- 2 for Indian Ocean and 3 for Atlantic Ocean), NA Eutelsat, 1 Inmarsat (Atlantic Ocean region); HF radiotelephone communications with more than 20 countries
## Radio
**Radio stations:** AM 41, FM about 3,500 (this figure is an approximation and includes many repeaters), shortwave 2 (1998)
**Radios:** 55.3 million (1997)
## Television
**Television stations:** 584 (plus 9,676 repeaters) (1995)
**Televisions:** 34.8 million (1997)
## Internet
**Internet country code:** .fr
**Internet service providers (ISPs):** 62 (2000)
**Internet hosts:** 15,182,001; 15.161 million (metropolitan France) (2010)
**Internet users:** 45.262 million; 44.625 million (metropolitan France) (2009)
## Mobile networks {#mobile_networks}
France currently has 4 mobile networks, Orange, SFR, Bouygues Telecom and Free all of which are licensed for UMTS. All except Free are also licensed for GSM. In 2016 Q3, Orange had 28.966 million mobile phone customers, SFR had 14.577 million, Bouygues had 12.660 million, Free Mobile had 12.385 million, and the MVNOs had 7.281 million.
Before the launch of Free Mobile in January 2012, the number of physical mobile phone operators was very limited. For example, Sweden currently has 4 licensed operators with their own networks despite a smaller and sparser population than France\'s, making improved coverage less economically rewarding. However, France has a number of MVNOs which increases competition.
However, Free Mobile obtained its licence in December 2009 and operates since January 2012.
In France, the satellite telecommunications system TELECOM 1 (TC1) will provide high-speed, broadband transfer of digital data between different sections of subscribing companies. Conventional telecommunications links between continental France and its overseas departments will also be supplied
| 429 |
Telecommunications in France
| 0 |
10,723 |
# Transport in France
**Transportation in France** relies on one of the densest networks in the world with 146 km of road and 6.2 km of rail lines per 100 km^2^. It is built as a web with Paris at its center. Rail, road, air and water are all widely developed forms of transportation in France.
## History
The first important human improvements were the Roman roads linking major settlements and providing quick passage for marching armies.
All through the Middle Ages improvements were few and second rate. Transport became slow and awkward to use. The early modern period saw great improvements. There was a very quick production of canals connecting rivers. It also saw great changes in oceanic shipping. Rather than expensive galleys, wind powered ships that were much faster and had more room for cargo became popular for coastal trade. Transatlantic shipping with the New World turned cities such as Nantes, Bordeaux, Cherbourg-Octeville and Le Havre into major ports.
## Railways
*Main article: Rail transport in France*
There is a total of 29,901 km of railway in France, mostly operated by SNCF (Société nationale des chemins de fer français), the French national railway company. Like the road system, the French railways are subsidised by the state, receiving €13.2 billion in 2013. The railway system is a small portion of total travel, accounting for less than 10% of passenger travel.
From 1981 onwards, a newly constructed set of high-speed *Lignes à Grande Vitesse* (LGV) lines linked France\'s most populous areas with the capital, starting with Paris-Lyon. In 1994, the Channel Tunnel opened, connecting France and Great Britain by rail under the English Channel. The TGV has set many world speed records, the most recent on 3 April 2007, when a new version of the TGV dubbed the V150 with larger wheels than the usual TGV, and a stronger 25000 hp engine, broke the world speed record for conventional rail trains, reaching 574.8 km/h (357.2 mph).
Trains, unlike road traffic, drive on the left (except in Alsace-Moselle). Metro and tramway services are not thought of as trains and usually follow road traffic in driving on the right (except the Lyon Metro).
France was ranked 7th among national European rail systems in the 2017 European Railway Performance Index for intensity of use, quality of service and safety performance, a decrease from previous years. The French non-TGV intercity service (TET) is in decline, with old infrastructure and trains. It is likely to be hit further as the French government is planning to remove the monopoly that rail currently has on long-distance journeys by letting coach operators compete. Travel to the UK through the Channel Tunnel has grown in recent years, and from May 2015 passengers have been able to travel direct to Marseille, Avignon and Lyon. Eurostar is also introducing new Class 374 trains and refurbishing the current Class 373s.
The French government are making plans to privatise the French railway network, following a similar model Great Britain used from the 1990s until the 2020s.
### Rapid transit {#rapid_transit}
Six cities in France currently have a rapid transit service (frequently known as a \'metro\'). Full metro systems are in operation in Paris (16 lines), Lyon (4 lines) and Marseille (2 lines). Light metro (VAL-type) systems are in use in Lille (2 lines), Toulouse (2 lines) and Rennes (2 lines).
| 557 |
Transport in France
| 0 |
10,723 |
# Transport in France
## Railways
### Trams
In spite of the closure of most of France\'s first generation tram systems in earlier years, a fast-growing number of France\'s major cities have modern tram or light rail networks, including Paris, Lyon (Lyon having the biggest one), Toulouse, Montpellier, Saint-Étienne, Strasbourg and Nantes. Recently the tram has seen a very big revival with many experiments such as ground level power supply in Bordeaux, or trolleybuses pretending to be trams in Nancy.
This way of travelling started disappearing in France at the end of the 1930s. Only Lille, Marseille and Saint-Étienne have never given up their tram systems. Since the 1980s, several cities have re-introduced it. The following French towns and cities run light rail or tram systems:
- Angers - since 2011;
- Besançon - since 2014;
- Bordeaux - since 2003;
- Brest - since 2012;
- Caen - since 2002 as a \'trams on tyres\' system, replaced 2019 by conventional trams;
- Clermont-Ferrand - since 2006, \'trams on tyres\';
- Grenoble - since 1987;
- Île-de-France (Paris metropolitan area) - since 1992
- Lille, Roubaix and Tourcoing - non-stop since 1909;
- Lyon - since 2001;
- Le Mans - since 2007;
- Marseille - since 2007;
- Montpellier - since 2000;
- Mulhouse - since 2006
- Nancy - since 2000, \'trams on tyres\' system featuring a single guide rail while running on tyres;
- Nice - since 2007;
- Nantes - since 1985;
- Orléans - since 2000;
- Reims - since 2011;
- Rouen - since 1994;
- Saint-Étienne - non-stop since 1881;
- Strasbourg - since 1994
- Toulouse - since 2010 (previously existed from 1906 to 1952)
- Valenciennes - since 2006
- Dijon - since 2012
- Le Havre - since 2012
Tram systems are planned or under construction in Tours, and Fort-de-France. The revival of tram networks in France has brought about a number of technical developments both in the traction systems and in the styling of the cars:
: *APS third rail*: The Alstom APS system uses a third rail placed between the running rails, divided electrically into eight-metre segments with three metre neutral sections between. Each tram has two power collection skates, next to which are antennas that send radio signals to energise the power rail segments as the tram passes over them. At any one time no more than two consecutive segments under the tram should actually be live. Alstrom developed the system primarily to avoid intrusive power supply cables in sensitive area of the old city of Bordeaux.
```{=html}
<!-- -->
```
: *Modern styling*: The Eurotram, used in Strasbourg has a modern design that makes it look almost as much like a train as a tram, and has large windows along its entire length.
```{=html}
<!-- -->
```
: *Modular design*: The Citadis tram, flagship of the French manufacturer Alstom, enjoys an innovative design combining lighter bogies with a modular concept for carriages providing more choices in the types of windows and the number of cars and doors. The recent Citadis-Dualis, intended to run at up to 100 km/h, is suitable for stop spacings ranging from 500 m to 5 km. Dualis is a strictly modular partial low-floor car, with all doors in the low-floor sections.
[Dualis extends the reach of the Citadis family from Railway Gazette, 2 June 2007](http://www.railwaygazette.com/news_view/article/2007/07/7583/dualis_extends_the_reach_of_the_citadis_family.html). Retrieved 15 February 2009. `{{webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090213214426/http://www.railwaygazette.com/news_view/article/2007/07/7583/dualis_extends_the_reach_of_the_citadis_family.html |date=February 13, 2009 }}`{=mediawiki}
Prominent bi-articulated \"tram-like\" Van Hool vehicles (Mettis) are used in Metz since 2013. They work as classic trams but without needing rails and catenaries, and can transport up to 155 passengers while being ecological thanks to a diesel-electric hybrid engine. In the starting up, batteries feed the engine of the bus, which can then roll 150 meters before the diesel engine takes over.
| 636 |
Transport in France
| 1 |
10,723 |
# Transport in France
## Roads
There are \~950000 km of roads in France. The French motorway network or autoroute system consists largely of toll roads, except around large cities, in Brittany, in parts of Normandy, in the Ardennes and in Alsace. It is a network totalling 12,000 km of motorways operated by private companies such as Sanef (Société des autoroutes du Nord et de l\'Est de la France). It has the 8th largest highway network in the world, trailing only the United States, China, India, Russia, Japan, Canada, Spain and Germany.
France currently counts 30,500 km of major trunk roads or routes nationales and state-owned motorways. By way of comparison, the *routes départementales* cover a total distance of 365,000 km. The main trunk road network reflects the centralising tradition of France: the majority of them leave the gates of Paris. Indeed, trunk roads begin on the parvis of Notre-Dame of Paris at Kilometre Zero. To ensure an effective road network, new roads not serving Paris were created.
In 2022, France safety rate is near but not better than the OECD median, with rates of 49.8 per million population (or 4.98 / 100 000) and 5.2 per billion vehicle kilometers traveled (0.52 / 100 million VKT).
France is believed to be the most car-dependent country in Europe. In 2005, 937 billion vehicle kilometres were travelled in France (85% by car). While the traveled distance did not change, from 2012 to 2022, it is counted as 730 billion vehicle kilometers. Car makes 80% of the 1000 billion vehicle kilometers traveled each year. Traveled distance is reduced in 2020, but is counted in 2019 as 615 billion vehicle kilometer traveled including 448 car with a French registration plate according to the Union routière de France.
In order to overcome this dependence, in France and many more countries the long-distance coaches\' market has been liberalised. Since 2015, with the law Macron, the market has exploded: the increasing demand lead to a higher supply of bus services and coach companies.
Black Saturday refers, in France, to the day of the year when road traffic is most dense due to the many departures on holiday. (Traffic problems are exacerbated by France\'s extreme centralisation, with Paris being the hub of the entire national highway network.) This Saturday is usually at the end of July, though in 2007 both the last Saturday of July and the first Saturday of August are designated as Black Saturdays. The Autoroute du Soleil, the highway to the south of France and Spain, is usually particularly busy. In 2004 there was more than 700 km in accumulated traffic congestion. The black colour is the qualification with which the French government web site *Bison Futé* designates a day with *extrêmement dense* (extremely busy) traffic. The French newspapers call this day *samedi noir* after Bison Futé\'s designation. Usually, the French call these days *les jours de grands départs* (days of great departures). In Dutch, this French phenomenon was known as *zwarte zaterdag* long before the French adopted the term *samedi noir*, both meaning (literally) Black Saturday.
The term Black Saturday may also refer to Saturday July 31, 1982, when the worst road accident in French history happened. Around 1:45 AM, a coach collided into passenger cars near Beaune in dense holiday traffic during rainfall. The collision and subsequent fire killed 53 people, among which 46 were children. After this crash, a regulation was enforced to prohibit the transportation of groups of children during this part of the year.
| 584 |
Transport in France
| 2 |
10,723 |
# Transport in France
## Roads
### Electric roads {#electric_roads}
*Main article: Electric road* France plans to invest 30 to 40 billion euro by 2035 in an electric road system spanning 8,800 kilometers that recharges electric cars, buses and trucks while driving. Two projects for assessment of electric road technologies were announced in 2023. Three technologies are being considered: ground-level power supply, inductive charging, and overhead lines. Ground-level power supply technologies, provided by Alstom, Elonroad, and others, are considered the most likely candidate for electric roads. Inductive charging is not considered a mature technology as it delivers the least power, loses 20%-25% of the supplied power when installed on trucks, and its health effects have yet to be documented. Overhead lines is the most mature technology, but the catenaries and overhead wires pose safety and maintenance issues, and motorway companies find overhead lines too expensive.
A working group of the French Ministry of Ecology recommended adopting a European electric road standard formulated with Sweden, Germany, Italy, the Netherlands, Spain, Poland, and others. A standard for electrical equipment on-board a vehicle powered by a rail electric road system (ERS), CENELEC Technical Standard 50717, has been published in late 2022. A standard encompassing full interoperability and a \"unified and interoperable solution\" for ground-level power supply electric road systems, detailing complete specifications for \"communication and power supply through conductive rails embedded in the road\" is specified in CENELEC technical standard 50740 in accordance with European Union directive 2023/1804. The standard was approved in 2025.
#### Trials
Alstom has developed a ground-level power supply (alimentation par le sol - APS) system for use with buses and other vehicles. The system has been tested for safety when the road is cleared by snowplows, under exposure to snow, ice, salting, and saturated brine, and for skid and road adherence safety for vehicles, including motorcycles. Alstom will trial its electric road system (ERS) on the public road RN205 in the Rhône-Alpes region between 2024 and 2027. The system is expected to supply 500 kW of power for electric heavy trucks, as well as power for road utility vehicles and electric cars.
Vinci will test two electric road systems (ERS) from 2023 to 2027. Both technologies will initially be tested in laboratory conditions, and upon meeting the test requirements they will be installed along 2 kilometers each on the A10 autoroute south of Paris. Wireless ERS by Electreon will be tested for durability under highway traffic, and will attempt to reach 200 kW of power delivery per truck using multiple receivers. Rail ERS by Elonroad, which supplies 350 kW of power per receiver, will be tested for skid effects on motorcycles. Both systems will be interoperable with cars, buses, and trucks.
### Bus transport in France {#bus_transport_in_france}
*Main article: Bus transport in France* In most, if not all, French cities, urban bus services are provided at a flat-rate charge for individual journeys. Many cities have bus services that operate well out into the suburbs or even the country. Fares are normally cheap, but rural services can be limited, especially on weekends.
Trains have long had a monopoly on inter-regional buses, but in 2015 the French government introduced reforms to allow bus operators to travel these routes.
| 538 |
Transport in France
| 3 |
10,723 |
# Transport in France
## Waterways and canals {#waterways_and_canals}
The French natural and man-made waterways network is the largest in Europe extending to over 8500 km of which (**VNF**, *Navigable Waterways of France*), the French navigation authority, manages the navigable sections. Some of the navigable rivers include the Loire, Seine and Rhône. The assets managed by VNF comprise 6700 km of waterways, made up of 3800 km of canals and 2900 km of navigable rivers, 494 dams, 1595 locks, 74 navigable aqueducts, 65 reservoirs, 35 tunnels and a land area of 800 km2. Two significant waterways not under VNF\'s control are the navigable sections of the River Somme and the Brittany Canals, which are both under local management.
Approximately 20% of the network is suitable for commercial boats of over 1000 tonnes and the VNF has an ongoing programme of maintenance and modernisation to increase depth of waterways, widths of locks and headroom under bridges to support France\'s strategy of encouraging freight onto water.
## Marine transport {#marine_transport}
France has an extensive merchant marine, including 55 ships of size Gross register tonnage 1,000 and above. The country also maintains a captive register for French-owned ships in Iles Kerguelen (French Southern and Antarctic Lands).
French companies operate over 1,400 ships of which 700 are registered in France. France\'s 110 shipping firms employ 12,500 personnel at sea and 15,500 on shore. Each year, 305 million tonnes of goods and 15 million passengers are transported by sea. Marine transport is responsible for 72% of France\'s imports and exports.
France also boasts a number of seaports and harbours, including Bayonne, Bordeaux, Boulogne-sur-Mer, Brest, Calais, Cherbourg-Octeville, Dunkerque, Fos-sur-Mer, La Pallice, Le Havre, Lorient, Marseille, Nantes, Nice, Paris, Port-la-Nouvelle, Port-Vendres, Roscoff, Rouen, Saint-Nazaire, Saint-Malo, Sète, Strasbourg and Toulon.
## Air travel {#air_travel}
There are approximately 478 airports in France (1999 est.) and by a 2005 estimate, there are three heliports. 288 of the airports have paved runways, with the remaining 199 being unpaved.`{{clarify|date=July 2020}}`{=mediawiki}
Among the airspace governance authorities active in France, one is Aéroports de Paris, which has authority over the Paris region, managing 14 airports including the two busiest in France, Charles de Gaulle Airport and Orly Airport. The former, located in Roissy near Paris, is the fifth busiest airport in the world with 60 million passenger movements in 2008, and France\'s primary international airport, serving over 100 airlines.
The national carrier of France is Air France, a full service global airline which flies to 20 domestic destinations and 150 international destinations in 83 countries (including Overseas departments and territories of France) across all 6 major continents
| 433 |
Transport in France
| 4 |
10,727 |
# French Guinea
Guinea \|flag_s1 = Flag of Guinea.svg \|image_flag = Flag of France.svg \|flag = Flag of France \|flag_type = Flag \|image_map = French west africa guinea.png \|image_map_caption = **Green**: French Guinea\
**Lime**: French West Africa\
**Dark gray**: Other French possessions\
**Darkest gray**: French Republic \|anthem = *\"\[\[La Marseillaise\]\]\"*\
`{{center|[[File:La Marseillaise.ogg]]}}`{=mediawiki} \|capital = Conakry \|religion = Roman Catholic,Islam \|leader1 = Noël Ballay \|year_leader1 = 1891-1900 \|leader2 = Jean Ramadier \|year_leader2 = 1956-1958 \|title_leader = Governor \|deputy1 = \|year_deputy1 = \|deputy2 = \|year_deputy2 = \|title_deputy = \|footnotes = \|today = Guinea \|demonym = }}
**French Guinea** (*Guinée française*) was a French colonial possession in West Africa. Its borders, while changed over time, were in 1958 those of the current independent nation of Guinea.
French Guinea was established by France in 1891, within the same borders as its previous colony known as Rivières du Sud (1882--1891). Prior to 1882, the coastal portions of French Guinea were part of the French colony of Senegal.
In 1891, Rivières du Sud was placed under the colonial lieutenant governor at Dakar, who had authority over the French coastal regions east to Porto-Novo (modern Benin). In 1894 Rivières du Sud, Côte d\'Ivoire and Dahomey were separated into \'independent\' colonies, with Rivières du Sud being renamed as the **Colony of French Guinea**. In 1895, French Guinea was made one of several dependent colonies and its Governor became one of several Lieutenant Governors who reported to a Governor-General in Dakar. In 1904, this federation of colonies was formalised as French West Africa. French Guinea, Senegal, Dahomey, Côte d\'Ivoire and Upper Senegal and Niger, were each ruled by a lieutenant governor, under the Governor General in Dakar.
## Colonial history {#colonial_history}
Guinea was ruled by France until 1958. It became independent from France in 1958 following its voters\' rejection of Charles de Gaulle\'s Constitution of 1958. At the time French Guinea was the only colony to reject the new constitution. French Guinea became the modern-day country of Guinea, keeping French as its official language
| 335 |
French Guinea
| 0 |
10,739 |
# Geography of French Polynesia
**French Polynesia** is located in Oceania. It is a group of six archipelagos in the South Pacific Ocean, about halfway between South America and Australia. Its area is about 4,167 km^2^ (around 130 islands), of which 3,827 km^2^ is land and 340 km^2^ is (inland) water. It has a coastline of 2,525 km but no land borders with other countries.
## Physical geography {#physical_geography}
There are 118 islands in French Polynesia (and many more islets or *motus* around atolls). Four of the islands are volcanic and one island is coral. Makatea in French Polynesia is one of the three great phosphate rock islands in the Pacific Ocean -- the others are Banaba (Ocean Island) in Kiribati and Nauru. The terrain consists of a mixture of rugged high islands and low islands with reefs.
It is made up of six archipelagos. The largest and most populated island is Tahiti, in the Society Islands.
The archipelagos are:
- Marquesas Islands -- administratively making the Marquesas Islands subdivision (12 high islands and 1 atoll)
- Society Islands -- administratively subdivided into the Windward Islands subdivision (5 high islands) and the Leeward Islands District (5 atolls)
- Tuamotu Archipelago -- administratively part of the Tuamotu-Gambier subdivision (\<80 atolls, grouping over 3,100 islands or islets)
- Gambier Islands -- administratively part of the Tuamotu-Gambier subdivision (2 atolls in genesis)
- Austral Islands -- administratively part of the Austral Islands subdivision (5 atolls)
- Bass Islands -- administratively part of the Austral Islands subdivision (2 atolls)
Aside from Tahiti, some other important atolls, islands, and island groups in French Polynesia are: Ahē, Bora Bora, Hiva \'Oa, Huahine, Mai\'ao, Maupiti, Meheti\'a, Mo\'orea, Nuku Hiva, Raiatea, Taha\'a, Tetiaroa, Tupua\'i, and Tūpai. The country\'s highest point is Mont Orohena on Tahiti at 2,241 meters high.
## Climate
The country has a tropical, but moderate climate.
## Statistics
Maritime claims
:\* Territorial sea: 12 nautical miles
:\* Exclusive economic zone: 200 nautical miles
Natural resources
: Timber, fish, cobalt, hydropower
Land use
:\* Arable land: 0.68%
:\* Permanent crops: 6.28%
:\* Other: 93
| 348 |
Geography of French Polynesia
| 0 |
10,740 |
# Demographics of French Polynesia
Demographic features of the population of French Polynesia include population density, ethnicity, religious affiliations and other aspects.
## Population
### Structure of the population {#structure_of_the_population}
Age Group Male Female Total \%
----------- --------- --------- --------- ---------
Total 141 479 137 970 279 448 100
0--4 8 334 7 742 16 076 5.75
5--9 10 391 9 721 20 112 7.20
10--14 11 259 10 710 21 969 7.86
15--19 11 055 10 655 21 710 7.77
20--24 10 126 9 582 19 708 7.05
25--29 9 892 9 878 19 770 7.07
30--34 11 185 11 240 22 424 8.02
35--39 10 934 11 189 22 123 7.92
40--44 10 019 9 915 19 934 7.13
45--49 9 807 9 623 19 430 6.95
50--54 9 960 9 466 19 426 6.95
55--59 8 621 8 165 16 785 6.01
60--64 6 804 6 348 13 152 4.71
65--69 5 425 5 156 10 581 3.79
70--74 3 299 3 338 6 636 2.37
75--79 2 353 2 478 4 831 1.73
80--84 1 274 1 539 2 813 1.01
85--89 573 874 1 446 0.52
90--94 145 262 407 0.15
95--99 22 79 101 0.04
100+ 1 12 13 \<0.01
Age group Male Female Total Percent
0--14 29 984 28 173 58 157 20.81
15--64 98 403 96 059 194 462 69.59
65+ 13 092 13 738 26 830 9.60
## Vital statistics {#vital_statistics}
### Births and deaths {#births_and_deaths}
Year Population Live births Deaths Natural change Crude birth rate Crude death rate Rate of natural change TFR
------ ------------ ------------- -------- ---------------- ------------------ ------------------ ------------------------ -------
1945 2,025 843 1,182
1946 2,288 1,081 1,207
1947 2,210 1,201 1,009
1948 2,378 1,068 1,310
1949 2,457 978 1,479
1950 2,489 1,131 1,358
1951 2,295 1,626 669
1952 2,902 948 1,954
1953 2,892 945 1,947
1954 3,019 838 2,181
1955 3,217 841 2,376
1956 3,403 837 2,566
1957 3,296 901 2,395
1958 3,081 920 2,161
1959 3,486 832 2,654
1960 3,624 936 2,688
1961 3,502 1,041 2,461
1962 3,797 787 3,010
1963 3,912 884 3,028
1964 4,177 912 3,265
1965 4,266 1,030 3,236
1966 4,071 1,090 2,981
1967 4,819 973 3,846
1968 4,567 968 3,599
1969 4,597 977 3,620
1970 4,390 1,065 3,325
1971 4,368 1,018 3,350
1972 4,334 958 3,376
1973 4,202 940 3,262
1974 4,307 896 3,411
1975 4,404 953 3,451
1976 4,252 1,047 3,205
1977 4,393 983 3,410
1978 4,272 1,120 3,152
1979 4,331 1,020 3,311
1980 4,544 1,005 3,539
1981 4,771 966 3,805
1982 4,818 1,008 3,810
1983 5,008 935 4,073
1984 169,841 5,206 881 4,325 30.7 5.2 25.5 3.762
1985 174,342 5,417 980 4,437 31.1 5.6 25.5 3.792
1986 178,903 5,413 962 4,451 30.3 5.4 24.9 3.645
1987 183,435 5,418 1,040 4,378 29.5 5.7 23.8 3.527
1988 187,940 5,802 976 4,826 30.9 5.2 25.7 3.674
1989 192,235 5,513 1,077 4,436 28.7 5.6 23.1 3.418
1990 196,398 5,570 974 4,596 28.4 5.0 23.4 3.394
1991 200,535 5,409 1,010 4,399 27.0 5.0 22.0 3.213
1992 204,510 5,313 1,049 4,264 26.0 5.1 20.9 3.104
1993 208,408 5,299 1,051 4,248 25.4 5.0 20.4 3.049
1994 212,185 5,110 1,070 4,040 24.1 5.0 19.1 2.902
1995 215,736 4,904 1,097 3,807 22.7 5.1 17.6 2.734
1996 219,150 4,847 1,019 3,828 22.1 4.6 17.5 2.682
1997 222,878 4,702 1,079 3,623 21.1 4.8 16.3 2.567
1998 226,851 4,564 1,102 3,462 20.1 4.9 15.2 2.457
1999 230,921 4,835 1,005 3,830 20.9 4.4 16.5 2.564
2000 235,213 4,933 1,020 3,913 21.0 4.3 16.7 2.574
2001 239,451 4,873 1,154 3,719 20.4 4.8 15.6 2.495
2002 243,241 4,759 1,108 3,651 19.6 4.6 15.0 2.405
2003 246,555 4,497 1,109 3,388 18.3 4.5 13.8 2.236
2004 249,714 4,426 1,106 3,320 17.7 4.4 13.3 2.181
2005 252,794 4,461 1,224 3,237 17.7 4.8 12.9 2.166
2006 255,945 4,591 1,134 3,457 18.0 4.4 13.6 2.198
2007 258,929 4,426 1,190 3,236 17.1 4.6 12.5 2.103
2008 261,252 4,629 1,168 3,461 17.7 4.5 13.2 2.183
2009 263,117 4,542 1,262 3,280 17.3 4.8 12.5 2.140
2010 264,916 4,581 1,261 3,320 17.3 4.8 12.5 2.152
2011 266,639 4,357 1,242 3,115 16.3 4.7 11.7 2.037
2012 268,153 4,284 1,360 2,924 16.0 5.1 10.9 2.004
2013 269,713 4,182 1,445 2,737 15.5 5.4 10.1 1.950
2014 271,438 4,159 1,442 2,717 15.3 5.3 10.0 1.947
2015 273,042 3,893 1,409 2,484 14.3 5.2 9.1 1.829
2016 274,570 3,976 1,394 2,582 14.5 5.1 9.4 1.869
2017 275,764 3,826 1,612 2,214 13.9 5.8 8.0 1.806
2018 276,615 3,817 1,618 2,199 13.8 5.8 7.9 1.820
2019 277,413 3,647 1,626 2,021 13.1 5.9 7.3 1.759
2020 278,117 3,731 1,711 2,020 13.4 6.2 7.3 1.812
2021 278,516 3,726 2,311 1,415 13.4 8.3 5.1 1.824
2022 278,770 3,639 1,681 1,958 13.1 6.0 7.0 1.796
2023 279,182 3,516 1,775 1,741 12.6 6.4 6.2 1.761
2024 3,270 1,832 1,438 11.7 1.663
## Ethnic groups {#ethnic_groups}
- Polynesian 78%
- Chinese 12%
- local French 6%
- metropolitan French 4%
| 812 |
Demographics of French Polynesia
| 0 |
10,740 |
# Demographics of French Polynesia
## Languages
- French (official) 73.5%
- Tahitian (official) 20.1%
- Marquesan 2.6%
- Austral languages 1.2%
- Paumotu 1%
- other 1
| 28 |
Demographics of French Polynesia
| 1 |
10,741 |
# Politics of French Polynesia
**Politics of French Polynesia** takes place in a framework of a parliamentary representative democratic French overseas collectivity, whereby the President of French Polynesia is the head of government, and of a multi-party system. Executive power is exercised by the government. Legislative power is vested in both the government and the Assembly of French Polynesia.
Between 1946 and 2003, French Polynesia had the status of an overseas territory (*\[\[territoire d\'outre-mer\]\]*, or *TOM*). In 2003 it became an overseas collectivity (*\[\[collectivité d\'outre-mer\]\]*, or *COM*). Its statutory law of 27 February 2004 gives it the particular designation of \"overseas country\" to underline the large autonomy of the territory.
## Executive branch {#executive_branch}
\|High Commissioner \|Éric Spitz \|*Non-Partisan* \|23 Sept 2022 \|- \|President of French Polynesia \|Moetai Brotherson \|Tāvini Huiraʻatira \|12 Mai 2023 \|- \|President of the Assembly \|Antony Géros \|Tāvini Huiraʻatira \|11 mai 2023 \|}
The President of the French Republic is represented by the High Commissioner of the Republic in French Polynesia (*Haut-Commissaire de la République en Polynésie française*). The government is headed by the President of French Polynesia. He submits as Council of Ministers a list of members of the Territorial Assembly, the Assembly of French Polynesia (*Assemblée de la Polynésie française*), for approval by them to serve as ministers.
## Legislative branch {#legislative_branch}
French Polynesia elects the Assembly of French Polynesia (*Assemblée de la Polynésie française*), the unicameral legislature on the territorial level. The Assembly of French Polynesia has 57 members, elected for a five-year term by proportional representation in multi-seat constituencies. Since the territorial elections of March 6, 2001, the parity bill now binds that the number of women matches the number of men at the Assembly.
## Political parties and elections {#political_parties_and_elections}
Party First round
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- -------------------------- -------------
Votes \% Votes
Tapura Huiraatira 53,790
Tahoera\'a Huiraatira 36,747
Tavini Huiraatira 25,890
Te Ora Api o Porinetia 4,604
E Reo Manahune 2,503
Popular Republican Union 1,443
**Total** **124,975**
Valid votes 124,975
Blank votes 1,091
Invalid votes 1,056
**Total** **127,122**
Registered voters/turnout 206,662
Source: Haut-Commissariat ([first round](http://www.polynesie-francaise.pref.gouv.fr/DOSSIERS/Elections/Election-des-representants-a-l-Assemblee-de-la-Polynesie-francaise-2018), [second round](http://www.polynesie-francaise.pref.gouv.fr/content/download/30248/157753/file/R%C3%A9sultats%20provisoires%20-%201er%20Tour%20Territoriales%20-%2022-4-18.xlsx))
The members of the Assembly of French Polynesia are elected in 6 different electoral districts or electoral circumscriptions (*circonscriptions électorales*) which slightly differ from the administrative subdivisions (*subdivisions administratives*) on the Tuamotus and the Gambier Islands. The 6 electoral circumscriptions (*circonscriptions électorales*) are:
- electoral circumscription of the Windward Islands (*circonscription des Îles du Vent*) (37 members)
- electoral circumscription of the Leeward Islands (*circonscription des Îles Sous-le-Vent*) (8 members)
- electoral circumscription of the Austral Islands (*circonscription des Îles Australes*) (3 members)
- electoral circumscription of the Gambier Islands and the Islands Tuamotu-East (*circonscription des Îles Gambier et Tuamotu Est*) (3 members)
- electoral circumscription of the Islands Tuamotu-West (*circonscription des Îles Tuamotu Ouest*) (3 members)
- electoral circumscription of the Marquesas Islands (*circonscription des Îles Marquises*) (3 members)
## Judicial branch {#judicial_branch}
Court of Appeal or Cour d\'Appel; Court of the First Instance or Tribunal de Premiere Instance; Court of Administrative Law or Tribunal Administratif.
## Administrative divisions {#administrative_divisions}
French Polynesia has five administrative subdivisions (*subdivisions administratives*):
- Windward Islands (*Îles du Vent* or officially *subdivision administrative des Îles du Vent*) (the two *subdivisions administratives* Windward Islands and Leeward Islands are part of the Society Islands)
- Leeward Islands (*Îles Sous-le-Vent* or officially *subdivision administrative des Îles Sous-le-Vent*) (the two *subdivisions administratives* Windward Islands and Leeward Islands are part of the Society Islands)
- Marquesas Islands (*(Îles) Marquises* or officially *subdivision administrative des (Îles) Marquises*)
- Austral Islands (*(Îles) Australes* or officially *subdivision administrative des (Îles) Australes*) (including the Bass Islands)
- Tuamotu-Gambier (*(Îles) Tuamotu-Gambier* or officially *subdivision administrative des (Îles) Tuamotu-Gambier*) (the Tuamotus and the Gambier Islands)
*note:* Clipperton Island (*Île de Clipperton*), just off the coast of Mexico, was administered by France from French Polynesia
| 632 |
Politics of French Polynesia
| 0 |
10,742 |
# Economy of French Polynesia
The **economy of French Polynesia** is one of a developed country with a service sector accounting for 75%. French Polynesia\'s GDP per capita is around \$22,000, one of the highest in the Pacific region.
## History
### Past economy {#past_economy}
Before French colonisation, the Polynesian islands that constitute nowadays French Polynesia, relied on a subsistence economy. Work was heavily organised and performed by the community as a whole under the direction of the Arii ruling class and the priests. Mountains were terraced for agriculture production, river banks were contained by stone walls, artificial soil was created on atolls in large trenches, and large systems made out of coral stone walls trapped and stocked live fish. Production outputs were divided by the ruling class between the population.
After the contact was established with European ships, foreign diseases killed large portions of the populations, and Christian beliefs and clergy produced a huge shift in the culture of those islands. With fewer population to feed, more land per capita was available, and the land use switched toward the limited production required by a family to live. Habitations moved toward seashores as the population relied more on the lagoon and sea trade. European ships stopped in those islands to purchase water, salt pork meat, dried fish and fresh fruits.
As French, English and Americans settled, part of the agriculture moved towards exports of oranges, coprah, coffee, cotton, and vanilla. They also exported Tahitian black pearls and sandalwood. Santal wood nearly disappeared, cotton production was short-lived, as the US\'s south recovered from the American Civil War, and coffee and orange trees suffered from imported diseases that stopped those exports. Coprah and vanilla prices and competition worldwide impacted heavily those productions in the second half of the 20th century, although they still exist. The guano mining at Makatea started in 1917 and stopped in 1966 when the stocks were depleted.
In 1962, France stationed military personnel in the region and started nuclear experimentations in Moruroa. French Polynesia\'s economy switched to services to support the military and the growing tourist industry.
### 21st century {#st_century}
Tourism accounts nowadays for about 13% of the GDP, and is a primary source of foreign currency earnings. The tourist industry was heavily impacted after the 9/11 terrorist attacks and the 2008 economic crises, and never really recovered since. There are around 160,000 tourists per year. The local government mostly focuses its action at developing a high-end market with luxurious hotels built with foreign investment and French tax cut incentives, but many of these investments close after a few years. The subsidized air company Air Tahiti Nui brings tourists from France, Los Angeles, Japan and China. Other companies also operate, like Air France and Air New Zealand.
The small manufacturing sector primarily processes agricultural products. Vanilla and pearls are its main exports.
The public administration is an important part of the GDP and a provider of stable employment. The French republic finances the functionaries working in education, justice, hospitals, gendarmerie (military police), and military. The local government controls its own administration, like the ministry of agriculture, and oversees the administration and buildings of some sectors like schools. The local government also influence a large part of the economy through subsidies and development programs.
Some parts of the economy involve quasi-monopolistic groups due to the small economy size, the challenges of a country of small islands spread in a huge oceanic space, and the action of the government through subsidies and public companies. Some sectors show an important horizontal and vertical integration trend. Recently, the local government tries to maintain a healthy competition and regulate the growth of the biggest groups, but face many challenges. For example, it was unable to prevent a major supermarket group to develop its own vegetable production, ending its supplying contracts with local farmers. But it blocked the merger of two local shipping companies to avoid a monopoly on some trade routes. The price of shipping goods between islands is fixed by the government, and subsidies are provided for transporting some items like farming products or construction materials.
Some products\' price margins are controlled by the local government to reduce the disparity of prices between the different archipelagos. Import taxes and VAT are fixed and collected by the local government that also control what imports are allowed to protect its agriculture and nature from diseases and invasive species.
The majority of the population is of mixed Polynesian and European origin. Around 5% of the population is of Asian origin, descending from farm workers imported in the 19th century to work in the cotton fields. They are present in the administration and trading sector of the economy. The recent metropolitan population is mostly involved in the state administration and in small and medium-sized enterprises.
| 800 |
Economy of French Polynesia
| 0 |
10,742 |
# Economy of French Polynesia
## Agriculture
Most Polynesians in agriculture farm traditional products like taro, ufi, casava and sweet potato to feed themselves and small surplus are sold for monetary income alongside a small fishing activity. Farmers of Asian origin tends to produce European and Asian vegetables for the local market.
The Moorea island developed pineapple production for local market and supplying the juice factory. Maupiti and Huahine produce watermelons. Tahiti and Tahaa have a small production of sugarcane for rum distillery.
Tahiti produces a small quantity of fresh milk, mostly for the local yogurt factory, as most of the population is used to drinking UHT and powdered milk from France and New Zealand. French Polynesia has a single slaughterhouse treating beef, pork, and chickens. The local beef meat production is very limited and mostly used to supply the local corned beef factory. Most of the meat comes from New Zealand, amounting to around 10% of the exports of fresh meat of this country. Two charcuteries produce ham, sausages, and pâtés from local and imported pork.
The copra production is heavily subsidized as the local government treats it as a form of social support for the remote islands with a limited range of economic activities possibilities like Tuamotu atolls. The copra is milled by the Huilerie de Tahiti to produce coconut oil mostly used for the monoi. The coconut cake residue is used as a cattle and pork feed, and surplus used to be exported to New Zealand.
Vanilla production depends heavily on the situation in Madagascar. When a typhoon hit this main supplier of vanilla, the market price increased worldwide and the local Polynesian government started a heavy program of subsidies and loans to develop vanilla farms. As the Polynesian production increased and Madagascar recovered, prices dropped and a lot of Polynesian farmers stopped caring for their vanilla plants. The plants are fragile and require regular care of experienced farmers. Diseases and insects can heavily reduce the production, and the cost of chemical products used impact the farmer harder when the vanilla prices are low. As the vanilla production falls, the price increase and the government started a new program of development, starting a new cycle. Despite the high price of Tahitian dried vanilla on the international market, it usually still finds buyers in the high-end market because of the specificities of its cultivar and quality.
In the 1990s, the commercial production of Noni started because of the supposed benefits of the juice of this fruit. Exports were mostly directed toward the North American market. But this production was short-lived, falling quickly from 7000 tonnes in 2005 down to 2000 tonnes in 2008, as the plant can be easily farmed in any tropical climate, especially in countries with lower labor costs and more land.
A small vineyard production exists in Rangiroa atoll and is aimed at the high-end market, capitalizing on its rarity and specificity of a vine grown on coral soil in a tropical island.
| 498 |
Economy of French Polynesia
| 1 |
10,742 |
# Economy of French Polynesia
## Electricity
French Polynesia\'s electricity production in 2004 was 477 GWh. In 1998 59.72% of French Polynesia\'s electricity came from fossil fuel with the remainder from hydropower.
## Currency
French Polynesia uses the Comptoirs Francais du Pacifique franc (CFPF), with 1 CFP franc subdivided into 100 centimes. The CFP franc was formerly linked at the exact official rate of 0.055 French francs to one Pacifique franc. When France switched its currency to the euro in 1999 this static link remained true, so that the rate is now about 119.26 Pacifique franc to one euro (1 euro being exactly 6.55957 French francs). In 2016 the exchange rate was 110.2 CFP francs per US dollar
| 118 |
Economy of French Polynesia
| 2 |
10,743 |
# Telecommunications in French Polynesia
This article is about communications systems in French Polynesia.
The Honotua fiber optic cable connected Tahiti to Hawaii in 2010, increasing Internet speeds to 20 gigabits per second from 500 megabits per second. The cable will also connect to Moorea and the Leeward Islands of Huahine, Raiatea and Bora Bora
| 55 |
Telecommunications in French Polynesia
| 0 |
10,744 |
# Transport in French Polynesia
**Railways:** 0 km
**Highways:**\
*total:* 2590 km\
*paved:* 1735 km\
*unpaved:* 855 km (1999)
**Ports and harbours:** Mataura, Papeete, Rikitea, Uturoa
**Merchant marine:**\
*total:* 10 ships (`{{GT|1,000|disp=long}}`{=mediawiki} or over) totaling `{{GT|17,537}}`{=mediawiki}/`{{DWT|15,150|metric|disp=long}}`{=mediawiki}\
*ships by type:* cargo ship 3, passenger ship 2, passenger/cargo 3, refrigerated cargo 1, roll-on/roll-off ship 1 (2003 est.)
**Airports:** 49 (2003 est.)
**Airports - with paved runways:**\
*total:* 37\
*over 3,047 m:* 2\
*1,524 to 2,437 m:* 5\
*914 to 1,523 m:* 23\
*under 914 m:* 3 (2004 est.)
**Airports - with unpaved runways:**\
*total:* 13\
*914 to 1,523 m:* 5\
*under 914 m:* 8 (2004 est.)
**Heliports** 1 (2003 est
| 108 |
Transport in French Polynesia
| 0 |
10,762 |
# Geography of French Guiana
**French Guiana** is an overseas region of France, located on the northern coast of South America between Suriname and Brazil. The country is part of Caribbean South America and borders the North Atlantic Ocean. It has low-lying plains with small mountains to the south. Its climate is split between tropical rainforest and tropical monsoon.
French Guiana is situated on the northeast coast of South America between 2° and 5° latitude north and covers an area of 90,999 km^2^ (35,135 square miles). It is separated from Surinam (Dutch Guiana) by the Maroni River and two of its tributaries, the Aoua and Itany, in the west, and from Brazil by the Tumuc Humac Mountains in the south and the Oyapock River in the east. Its 320-km (200-mile) Atlantic coastline is bordered by several rocky islands -- the Îles du Salut (Devil\'s Island, Royale and Saint-Joseph), the Père and Mère Islands, Malingre Island and Rémire Island, and the two Connétables---which are all part of French Guiana.
## Statistics
### Area
Land: 83,534 km^2^
### Land boundaries {#land_boundaries}
Total: 1,183 km\
Border countries: Brazil 673 km, Suriname 510 km (disputed)\
Coastline: 378 km
### Maritime claims {#maritime_claims}
Exclusive economic zone: 200 nmi territorial sea: 12 nmi.
### Land cover {#land_cover}
Primary Forest: 95%
### Natural resources {#natural_resources}
Bauxite, timber, gold (widely scattered), cinnabar, kaolin, fish, shrimp, rice, bananas.
## Climate
French Guiana\'s climate is tropical and hot with a Köppen climate classification of tropical rainforest (A*f*) throughout most of the country. Heavy showers, severe thunderstorms, and floodings are frequent, as is intense heat and humidity.
Although French Guiana is very close to the equator, the trade winds which blow almost the year round refresh the coastal region and prevent the formation of great tropical storms. The annual mean temperature on the coast is 80 F. There are two principal seasons: \"summer\" from July to December and the \"rainy season\" the rest of the year, broken only by a Short \"March Summer.\"
## Terrain
French Guiana extends almost 400 km (250 miles) into the continent and is divided into two natural zones: a small, low, swampy coastal area called the \"Terres Basses,\" varying from 16 to 48 km in width, and a granite peneplain called the \"Terres Hautes,\" worn down by erosion into steps forming a series of low steep hills. Almost the entire country is covered by rain forest and its many large rivers and streams, although their courses are broken by rapids, constitute the only natural means of penetration into the interior. The main rivers, flowing in a general south--north direction, are the Maroni, the Mana, the Iracoubo, the Sinnamary, the Kourou, the Mahury, the Approuague and the Oyapock
| 451 |
Geography of French Guiana
| 0 |
10,765 |
# Economy of French Guiana
The **economy of French Guiana** is tied closely to that of mainland France through subsidies and imports. Besides the French space center at Kourou, fishing and forestry are the most important economic activities in French Guiana. The large reserves of tropical hardwoods, not fully exploited, support an expanding sawmill industry which provides saw logs for export. Cultivation of crops is limited to the coastal area, where the population is largely concentrated; rice and manioc are the major crops. French Guiana is heavily dependent on imports of food and energy. Unemployment is a serious problem, particularly among younger workers.
**Budget:**\
*revenues:* \$135,5 million\
*expenditures:* \$135,5 million, including capital expenditures of \$105 million (1996)
**Electricity - production:** 465,2 GWh (2003)
**Electricity - production by source:**\
*fossil fuel:* 100%\
*hydro:* 0%\
*nuclear:* 0%\
*other:* 0% (1998)
**Electricity - consumption:** 432,6 GWh (2003)
**Electricity - exports:** 0 kWh (2003)
**Electricity - imports:** 0 kWh (2003)
A combined power plant with 55 MW solar, 3 MW hydrogen fuel cell, 20MW/38MWh battery and 16 MW hydrogen electrolyser with 88MWh storage began construction in 2021
| 183 |
Economy of French Guiana
| 0 |
10,766 |
# Telecommunications in French Guiana
There are telecommunications in French Guiana.
## Telephones
In 1923, there were 117 telephones in use, with 241 miles of wire. The number of telephones was approximately 6,800 by 1975, approximately 13,700 by 1982 and 18,100 by 1989. There were 47,000 telephone main lines in use in 1995, and 51,000 in 2001. There were 138,200 mobile cellular phones in 2002.
**Telephone system:**\
*domestic:* fair open wire and microwave radio relay system\
*international:* satellite earth station -- 1 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean)
## Telegraphs
In 1923, there were nine telegraph offices, with 205 miles of wire.
## Radio
Radio Cayenne began to broadcast on 9 June 1951, with regular broadcasts from January 1953. In 1998, radio stations were broadcast on AM 2, FM 14 (including 6 repeaters) and shortwave 6 (including 5 repeaters). There were 7,100 radio receivers by 1975. There were 104,000 radios in 1997.
## Television
There were three television stations (plus eight low-power repeaters) in 1997. There were 3,000 television receivers by 1975. There were 30,000 televisions in 1997.
## Internet
There number of internet users was 2,000 in 2000, and 3,200 in 2002. There were two internet service providers in 2000.
The top-level domain country code is .gf
| 205 |
Telecommunications in French Guiana
| 0 |
10,767 |
# Transport in French Guiana
**Transport in French Guiana** consists of transport by road, boat, bus, and airplane. There is a railway line within the Guiana Space Centre to transport spacecraft. The road network is mainly concentrated in the coastal region. The interior of Guiana is accessed by plane or boat. There is one main airport, however there are several smaller airstrips in the interior.
## Highways
As of 2018, there are 440 kilometres of national roads, 408 kilometres of departmental road, and 1,311 kilometres of municipal roads. There is no motorway.
Following a treaty between France and Brazil signed in July 2005, the Oyapock River Bridge over the Oyapock River was built and completed in 2011, becoming the first land crossing ever between French Guiana and the rest of the world (there is a ferry crossing to Albina, Suriname). The bridge was officially opened on 18 March 2017, however the border post introduction on the Brazilian caused additional delays. As of 2020, it possible to drive uninterrupted from Cayenne to Macapá, the capital of the state of Amapá in Brazil.
## Railways
A short railway is used within the Guiana Space Centre (this short railway is for transporting spacecraft inside the base to the launch pad, not for passenger use). The railway is double tracked and used by unpowered rail cars (tanker cars, flatcars and launch table transporter platforms fitted with bogies) and are towed by rubber wheeled vehicles with railway wheels or bogies to ride along the rail tracks (Road--rail vehicles).
From 1880s to sometime after 1926 a steam narrow gauge railway was used for gold mines in Saint-Elie and two other lines were partially built and never used.
Two prison railways were built in the 1890s. One line connected Saint-Laurent-du-Maroni to Saint-Jean-du-Maroni. Another line went to Charvein. The railway lines were abandoned after prisons closed and disappeared sometime after 1946.
There are no other railways in French Guiana and none have existed for revenue passenger service, and there are no connections to neighbouring countries. Some maps - including some on Wikipedia - depicting railway density give the impression of railways existing in French Guiana due to conflating the existing railways in the metropole with the lack of same in French Guiana, thus creating a statistical artifact.
## Airports
The main international airport of French Guiana is Cayenne -- Félix Eboué Airport. The secondary international airport is the Saint-Laurent-du-Maroni Airport.
In October 2020, the Camopi Airport was upgraded for regular passenger transport.
There are six smaller restricted airports:
- Grand-Santi Airport
- Maripasoula Airport
- Régina Airport
- Saint-Georges-de-l\'Oyapock Airport
- Saül Airport
- Sinnamary Airport
## Public transport {#public_transport}
The CACL (Communauté d'Agglomération du Centre Littoral) provides bus service for the urban area of Cayenne and its suburbs. As of 2021, there are six urban bus lines. School transport is also handled by CACL.
Since early 2010, an agreement was established between the General Council, responsible for organizing transport between the towns, and Taxi Co. The new public service became known as TIG (Long Distance Transport of Guyana).
As of 2021, TIG provides nine bus lines to towns outside the urban area of Cayenne.
## Harbours
The main harbour is Degrad des Cannes. The harbour was built in 1972, and handles all international cargo from and to French Guiana. In 2007, the port handled about 700,000 tonnes of cargo. The port also includes as a marina.
Other harbours include Cayenne, Kourou, Larivot in Matoury, and Saint-Laurent-du-Maroni
| 579 |
Transport in French Guiana
| 0 |
10,779 |
# Frequency
*Frequencies* (film)\|the album\|Frequencies (album){{!}}*Frequencies* (album)\|other uses\|Frequency (disambiguation)}} `{{Infobox physical quantity
| name = Frequency
| image = ลูกตุ้มธรรมชาติ.gif
| caption = A [[pendulum]] making 25 complete [[oscillations]] in 60 s, a frequency of 0.41{{overline|6}} [[Hertz|Hz]]
| unit = [[hertz]] (Hz)
| otherunits =
{{ublist
| cycle per second (cps)
| [[revolution per minute]] (rpm or r/min)
}}
| symbols = {{math|''f'', ''ν''}}
| baseunits = [[Second|s]]<sup>−1</sup>
| dimension = wikidata
| derivations =
{{ublist
| {{math|1=''f'' = 1 / ''T''}}
}}
}}`{=mediawiki}
**Frequency** is the number of occurrences of a repeating event per unit of time. Frequency is an important parameter used in science and engineering to specify the rate of oscillatory and vibratory phenomena, such as mechanical vibrations, audio signals (sound), radio waves, and light.
The interval of time between events is called the **period**. It is the reciprocal of the frequency. For example, if a heart beats at a frequency of 120 times per minute (2 hertz), its period is one half of a second.
Special definitions of frequency are used in certain contexts, such as the angular frequency in rotational or cyclical properties, when the rate of angular progress is measured. Spatial frequency is defined for properties that vary or cccur repeatedly in geometry or space.
The unit of measurement of frequency in the International System of Units (SI) is the hertz, having the symbol Hz.
## Definitions and units `{{anchor|Definitions|Units|Definition|Unit}}`{=mediawiki} {#definitions_and_units}
For cyclical phenomena such as oscillations, waves, or for examples of simple harmonic motion, the term *frequency* is defined as the number of cycles or repetitions per unit of time. The conventional symbol for frequency is *f* or *ν* (the Greek letter nu) is also used. The *period* *T* is the time taken to complete one cycle of an oscillation or rotation. The frequency and the period are related by the equation $f = \frac{1}{T}.$
The term *temporal frequency* is used to emphasise that the frequency is characterised by the number of occurrences of a repeating event per unit time.
The SI unit of frequency is the hertz (Hz), named after the German physicist Heinrich Hertz by the International Electrotechnical Commission in 1930. It was adopted by the CGPM (Conférence générale des poids et mesures) in 1960, officially replacing the previous name, *cycle per second* (cps). The SI unit for the period, as for all measurements of time, is the second. A traditional unit of frequency used with rotating mechanical devices, where it is termed *rotational frequency*, is revolution per minute, abbreviated r/min or rpm.`{{refn|{{cite journal|title=Special Publication 811: NIST Guide to the SI, Chapter 8|journal=NIST |date=28 January 2016 |url=https://www.nist.gov/pml/special-publication-811/nist-guide-si-chapter-8|access-date=2022-11-08}}}}`{=mediawiki} Sixty rpm is equivalent to one hertz.
## Period versus frequency {#period_versus_frequency}
As a matter of convenience, longer and slower waves, such as ocean surface waves, are more typically described by wave period rather than frequency. Short and fast waves, like audio and radio, are usually described by their frequency. Some commonly used conversions are listed below:
Frequency Period
------------------- ------------------
1 mHz (10^−3^ Hz) 1 ks (10^3^ s)
1 Hz (10^0^ Hz) 1 s (10^0^ s)
1 kHz (10^3^ Hz) 1 ms (10^−3^ s)
1 MHz (10^6^ Hz) 1 μs (10^−6^ s)
1 GHz (10^9^ Hz) 1 ns (10^−9^ s)
1 THz (10^12^ Hz) 1 ps (10^−12^ s)
## Related quantities {#related_quantities}
- Rotational frequency, usually denoted by the Greek letter *ν* (nu), is defined as the instantaneous rate of change of the number of rotations, *N*, with respect to time: `{{nowrap|''ν'' {{=}}`{=mediawiki} d*N*/d*t*;}} it is a type of frequency applied to rotational motion.
- Angular frequency, usually denoted by the Greek letter *ω* (omega), is defined as the rate of change of angular displacement (during rotation), *θ* (theta), or the rate of change of the phase of a sinusoidal waveform (notably in oscillations and waves), or as the rate of change of the argument to the sine function:
: $y(t) = \sin \theta(t) = \sin(\omega t) = \sin(2 \mathrm{\pi} f t)$ $\frac{\mathrm{d} \theta}{\mathrm{d} t} = \omega = 2 \mathrm{\pi} f .$
: The unit of angular frequency is the radian per second (rad/s) but, for discrete-time signals, can also be expressed as radians per sampling interval, which is a dimensionless quantity. Angular frequency is frequency multiplied by 2`{{pi}}`{=mediawiki}.
- Spatial frequency, denoted here by *ξ* (xi), is analogous to temporal frequency, but with a spatial measurement replacing time measurement,`{{refn|1=The term ''spatial period'', sometimes used in place of ''[[wavelength]]'', analogously corresponds to the (temporal) period.<ref>{{cite web |last1=Boreman |first1=Glenn D. |title=Spatial Frequency |url=https://spie.org/publications/tt52_12_spatial_frequency?SSO=1 |publisher=[[SPIE]] |access-date=22 January 2021}}</ref>|group=note}}`{=mediawiki} e.g.: $y(t) = \sin \theta(t,x) = \sin(\omega t + kx)$ $\frac{\mathrm{d} \theta}{\mathrm{d} x} = k = 2 \pi \xi.$
- Spatial period or wavelength is the spatial analog to temporal period.
| 782 |
Frequency
| 0 |
10,779 |
# Frequency
## In wave propagation `{{anchor|Frequency of waves}}`{=mediawiki} {#in_wave_propagation}
For periodic waves in nondispersive media (that is, media in which the wave speed is independent of frequency), frequency has an inverse relationship to the wavelength, *λ* (lambda). Even in dispersive media, the frequency *f* of a sinusoidal wave is equal to the phase velocity *v* of the wave divided by the wavelength *λ* of the wave: $f = \frac{v}{\lambda}.$
In the special case of electromagnetic waves in vacuum, then `{{nowrap|1=''v'' = ''c''}}`{=mediawiki}, where *c* is the speed of light in vacuum, and this expression becomes $f = \frac{c}{\lambda}.$
When monochromatic waves travel from one medium to another, their frequency remains the same---only their wavelength and speed change.
## Measurement
Measurement of frequency can be done in the following ways:
### Counting
Calculating the frequency of a repeating event is accomplished by counting the number of times that event occurs within a specific time period, then dividing the count by the period. For example, if 71 events occur within 15 seconds the frequency is: $f = \frac{71}{15 \,\text{s}} \approx 4.73 \, \text{Hz}.$ If the number of counts is not very large, it is more accurate to measure the time interval for a predetermined number of occurrences, rather than the number of occurrences within a specified time. The latter method introduces a random error into the count of between zero and one count, so on average half a count. This is called *gating error* and causes an average error in the calculated frequency of $\Delta f = \frac{1}{2T_\text{m}}$, or a fractional error of $\frac{\Delta f}{f} = \frac{1}{2 f T_\text{m}}$ where $T_\text{m}$ is the timing interval and $f$ is the measured frequency. This error decreases with frequency, so it is generally a problem at low frequencies where the number of counts *N* is small.
### Stroboscope
An old method of measuring the frequency of rotating or vibrating objects is to use a stroboscope. This is an intense repetitively flashing light (strobe light) whose frequency can be adjusted with a calibrated timing circuit. The strobe light is pointed at the rotating object and the frequency adjusted up and down. When the frequency of the strobe equals the frequency of the rotating or vibrating object, the object completes one cycle of oscillation and returns to its original position between the flashes of light, so when illuminated by the strobe the object appears stationary. Then the frequency can be read from the calibrated readout on the stroboscope. A downside of this method is that an object rotating at an integer multiple of the strobing frequency will also appear stationary.
### Frequency counter {#frequency_counter}
Higher frequencies are usually measured with a frequency counter. This is an electronic instrument which measures the frequency of an applied repetitive electronic signal and displays the result in hertz on a digital display. It uses digital logic to count the number of cycles during a time interval established by a precision quartz time base. Cyclic processes that are not electrical, such as the rotation rate of a shaft, mechanical vibrations, or sound waves, can be converted to a repetitive electronic signal by transducers and the signal applied to a frequency counter. As of 2018, frequency counters can cover the range up to about 100 GHz. This represents the limit of direct counting methods; frequencies above this must be measured by indirect methods.
### Heterodyne methods {#heterodyne_methods}
Above the range of frequency counters, frequencies of electromagnetic signals are often measured indirectly utilizing heterodyning (frequency conversion). A reference signal of a known frequency near the unknown frequency is mixed with the unknown frequency in a nonlinear mixing device such as a diode. This creates a heterodyne or \"beat\" signal at the difference between the two frequencies. If the two signals are close together in frequency the heterodyne is low enough to be measured by a frequency counter. This process only measures the difference between the unknown frequency and the reference frequency. To convert higher frequencies, several stages of heterodyning can be used. Current research is extending this method to infrared and light frequencies (optical heterodyne detection).
| 683 |
Frequency
| 1 |
10,779 |
# Frequency
## Examples
### Light
thumb\|upright=2\|Complete spectrum of electromagnetic radiation with the visible portion highlighted
Visible light is an electromagnetic wave, consisting of oscillating electric and magnetic fields traveling through space. The frequency of the wave determines its color: 400 THz (`{{val|4|e=14|ul=}}`{=mediawiki} Hz) is red light, 800 THz (`{{val|8|e=14|u=Hz}}`{=mediawiki}) is violet light, and between these (in the range 400--800 THz) are all the other colors of the visible spectrum. An electromagnetic wave with a frequency less than `{{val|4|e=14|u=Hz}}`{=mediawiki} will be invisible to the human eye; such waves are called infrared (IR) radiation. At even lower frequency, the wave is called a microwave, and at still lower frequencies it is called a radio wave. Likewise, an electromagnetic wave with a frequency higher than `{{val|8|e=14|u=Hz}}`{=mediawiki} will also be invisible to the human eye; such waves are called ultraviolet (UV) radiation. Even higher-frequency waves are called X-rays, and higher still are gamma rays.
All of these waves, from the lowest-frequency radio waves to the highest-frequency gamma rays, are fundamentally the same, and they are all called electromagnetic radiation. They all travel through vacuum at the same speed (the speed of light), giving them wavelengths inversely proportional to their frequencies. $\displaystyle c=f\lambda,$ where *c* is the speed of light (*c* in vacuum or less in other media), *f* is the frequency and *λ* is the wavelength.
In dispersive media, such as glass, the speed depends somewhat on frequency, so the wavelength is not quite inversely proportional to frequency.
### Sound
thumb\|upright=1.7\|The sound wave spectrum, with rough guide of some applications
Sound propagates as mechanical vibration waves of pressure and displacement, in air or other substances. In general, frequency components of a sound determine its \"color\", its timbre. When speaking about the frequency (in singular) of a sound, it means the property that most determines its pitch.
The frequencies an ear can hear are limited to a specific range of frequencies. The audible frequency range for humans is typically given as being between about 20 Hz and 20,000 Hz (20 kHz), though the high frequency limit usually reduces with age. Other species have different hearing ranges. For example, some dog breeds can perceive vibrations up to 60,000 Hz.
In many media, such as air, the speed of sound is approximately independent of frequency, so the wavelength of the sound waves (distance between repetitions) is approximately inversely proportional to frequency.
### Line current {#line_current}
In Europe, Africa, Australia, southern South America, most of Asia, and Russia, the frequency of the alternating current in household electrical outlets is 50 Hz (close to the tone G), whereas in North America and northern South America, the frequency of the alternating current in household electrical outlets is 60 Hz (between the tones B`{{music|♭}}`{=mediawiki} and B; that is, a minor third above the European frequency). The frequency of the \'hum\' in an audio recording can show in which of these general regions the recording was made.
| 486 |
Frequency
| 2 |
10,779 |
# Frequency
## Aperiodic frequency {#aperiodic_frequency}
**Aperiodic frequency** is the rate of incidence or occurrence of non-cyclic phenomena, including random processes such as radioactive decay. It is expressed with the unit reciprocal second (s^−1^) or, in the case of radioactivity, with the unit becquerel.
It is defined as a rate, `{{nowrap|1=''f'' = ''N''/Δ''t''}}`{=mediawiki}, involving the number of entities counted or the number of events happened (*N*) during a given time duration (Δ*t*); it is a physical quantity of type temporal rate
| 81 |
Frequency
| 3 |
10,781 |
# Film festival
A **film festival** is an organized, extended presentation of films in one or more cinemas or screening venues, usually annually and in a single city or region. Some film festivals show films outdoors or online.
Films may be of recent date and depending upon the festival\'s focus, can include international and/or domestic releases. Some film festivals focus on a specific format of film, such documentary, or runtime, such as short film festivals, or genre, such as horror films, category of filmmakers, such as women, production country/region or subject matter.
Film festivals can be competitive or non-competitive, and are often regarded within the film industry as launchpads for new filmmakers and indie films, as well as boosters for established filmmakers and studio productions. The films are either invited by festival curators, or selected by festival programmers from submissions made by the filmmakers, film producers, production companies, sales agents or distributors. Audiences have the opportunity to watch in festivals films premiering months before their commercial release, or films that may not benefit from a wide release and would otherwise be hard to find.
The oldest film festival in the world is the Venice Film Festival. The most prestigious film festivals in the world, known as the \"Big Five\", are (listed chronologically according to the date of foundation): Venice, Cannes, Berlin (the original *Big Three*), Toronto, and Sundance. Other major festivals include Karlovy Vary, Locarno, San Sebastián, SXSW, Telluride, Tribeca, and the three largest and most prestigious genre festivals, Sitges, Fantasia and Fantastic Fest.
## History
The Venice Film Festival in Italy began in 1932 and is the oldest film festival still running.
Mainland Europe\'s biggest independent film festival is ÉCU The European Independent Film Festival, which started in 2006 and takes place every spring in Paris, France. Edinburgh International Film Festival is the longest-running festival in Great Britain as well as the longest continually running film festival in the world.
Australia\'s first and longest-running film festival is the Melbourne International Film Festival (1952), followed by the Sydney Film Festival (1954).
North America\'s first and longest-running short film festival is the Yorkton Film Festival, established in 1947. The first film festival in the United States was the Columbus International Film & Video Festival, also known as The Chris Awards, held in 1953. According to the Film Arts Foundation in San Francisco, \"*The Chris Awards* (is) one of the most prestigious documentaries, educational, business and informational competitions in the U.S.; (it is) the oldest of its kind in North America and celebrating its 54th year\". It was followed four years later by the San Francisco International Film Festival, held in March 1957, which emphasized feature-length dramatic films. The festival played a major role in introducing foreign films to American audiences. Films in the first year included Akira Kurosawa\'s *Throne of Blood* and Satyajit Ray\'s *Pather Panchali\]\]*.
Today, thousands of film festivals take place around the world---from high-profile festivals such as Sundance Film Festival (Park City, Utah), Newport Beach Film Festival and Slamdance Film Festival, to horror festivals such as FrightFest, Screamfest, Telluride Horror Show, and the Park City Film Music Festival, the first American film festival dedicated to honoring music in film.
Film Funding competitions such as Writers and Filmmakers were introduced when the cost of production could be lowered significantly, and internet technology allowed for the collaboration of film production.
Film festivals have evolved significantly since the COVID-19 pandemic. Many festivals opted for virtual or hybrid festivals. The film industry, which was already in upheaval due to streaming options, has faced another major shift, and movies showcased at festivals have an even shorter runway to online launches.
| 607 |
Film festival
| 0 |
10,781 |
# Film festival
## Notable film festivals {#notable_film_festivals}
The \"Big Five\" film festivals are considered to be Venice, Cannes, Berlin, Toronto, and Sundance.
The Toronto International Film Festival is the most popular festival in North America. *Time* wrote it had \"grown from its place as the most influential fall film festival to the most influential film festival, period\".
The Seattle International Film Festival is credited as being the largest film festival in the United States, regularly showing over 400 films in a month across the city.
### Competitive feature films {#competitive_feature_films}
The festivals in Berlin, Cairo, Cannes, Goa, Karlovy Vary, Locarno, Mar del Plata, Moscow, San Sebastián, Shanghai, Tallinn, Tokyo, Venice, and Warsaw are accredited by the International Federation of Film Producers Associations (FIAPF) in the category of competitive feature films. As a rule, for films to compete, they must first be released during the festivals and not in any other previous venue beforehand.
### Genre films {#genre_films}
Sitges Film Festival in Spain, Fantasia International Film Festival in Canada, and Fantastic Fest in the United States are generally considered to be the three largest and most prestigious festivals for fantastic and horror films. Other important genre festivals include Beyond Fest, Brooklyn Horror Film Festival, Brussels International Fantastic Film Festival, Bucheon International Fantastic Film Festival, Fantaspoa, Fantasporto, FilmQuest, FrightFest, Neuchatel International Fantastic Film Festival, Nightmares Film Festival, Overlook Film Festival, Screamfest, Telluride Horror Show and Toronto After Dark.
Some general film festivals also have sections for genre films, the most prestigious ones being the Midnight section at Sundance Film Festival, the Midnighter section at SXSW, the Midnight Madness at TIFF and the Midnight section at Tribeca Festival.
### Experimental films {#experimental_films}
Ann Arbor Film Festival started in 1963. It is the oldest continually operated experimental film festival in North America and has become one of the premier film festivals for independent and, primarily, experimental filmmakers to showcase work.
### Independent films {#independent_films}
In the U.S., Telluride Film Festival, Sundance Film Festival, Austin Film Festival, Austin\'s South by Southwest, NYC\'s Tribeca Festival, and Slamdance Film Festival are all considered significant festivals for independent film. The Zero Film Festival is significant as the first and only festival exclusive to self-financed filmmakers. The biggest independent film festival in the UK is Raindance Film Festival. The British Urban Film Festival (which specifically caters to Black and minority interests) was officially recognized in the 2020 New Year Honours list.
### Subject-specific films {#subject_specific_films}
A few film festivals have focused on highlighting specific issues, topics, or subjects. These festivals have included mainstream and independent films. Some examples include military films, health-related film festivals, and human rights film festivals.
There are festivals, especially in the US, that highlight and promote films made by or about various ethnic groups and nationalities or feature the cinema from a specific foreign country. These include African-Americans, Asian-Americans, Mexican-Americans, Arabs, Jews, Italian, German, French, Palestinian, and Native American. The Deauville American Film Festival in France is devoted to the cinema of the United States. LGBTQ+ and Women\'s film festivals are also popular.
| 509 |
Film festival
| 1 |
10,781 |
# Film festival
## Notable film festivals {#notable_film_festivals}
### North American film festivals {#north_american_film_festivals}
Tribeca Festival, one of the most prestigious in North America, ranks first worldwide in terms of audience attendance and 11th in terms of media attendance.
The San Francisco International Film Festival, founded by Irving \"Bud\" Levin in 1957, is the oldest continuous annual film festival in the United States. It highlights current trends in international filmmaking and video production with an emphasis on work that has not yet secured American distribution.
The Newport Beach Film Festival, founded by Gregg Schwenk in 1999, has emerged as the largest international cinema event in coastal Southern California, attracting over 56,000 attendees to Orange County, CA. The Festival partners with over 40 non-profit organizations and pairs each with a film that aligns with their mission. The films featured include World, North America, U.S. and West Coast premieres as well as the International Spotlight Series which celebrates foreign language films.
The Vancouver International Film Festival, founded in 1958, is one of the largest film festivals in North America. It focuses on East Asian films, Canadian films, and nonfiction films. In 2016, there was an audience of 133,000 and 324 films.
The Toronto International Film Festival, founded by Bill Marshall, Henk Van der Kolk, and Dusty Cohl, is one of North America\'s most important film festivals, and is the most widely attended.
The Chicago International Film Festival, founded in 1964, is North America\'s longest-running competitive film festival. The 60th Chicago International Film Festival, scheduled during the month of October, will host over 40,000 attendees from around the world. The Festival\'s program, screening 175+ films from more than 50 countries, is presented in sections including the International Competition, New Directors Competition, Documentary, Black Perspectives, City & State, and Special Presentations.
The Cleveland International Film Festival (CIFF), founded in 1977, is largest film festival in Ohio and among the longest-running in the United States. The film festival is held at the Playhouse Square, which are a series of elegant theaters built in the early 1920s, and the largest performing arts center in the United States outside of New York City (only Lincoln Center is larger).
The Ottawa Canadian Film Festival, abbreviated OCanFilmFest, was co-founded by Ottawa-based filmmakers Jith Paul, Ed Kucerak, and Blair Campbell in 2015. It features films of various durations and genres from filmmakers across Canada.
The Sundance Film Festival founded by Sterling Van Wagenen (then head of Wildwood, Robert Redford\'s company), John Earle, and Cirina Hampton Catania (both serving on the Utah Film Commission at the time) is a significant festival for independent film.
The Woodstock Film Festival was launched in 2000 by filmmakers Meira Blaustein and Laurent Rejto to bring high-quality, independent films to the Hudson Valley region of New York. In 2010, Indiewire named the Woodstock Film Festival among the top 50 independent film festivals worldwide.
The Regina International Film Festival and Awards (RIFFA) founded by John Thimothy, one of the top leading international film festivals in western Canada (Regina, Saskatchewan) represented 35 countries in 2018 festival. RIFFA annual Award show and red carpet arrival event are getting noticed in the contemporary film and fashion industries in Western Canada.
Toronto\'s Hot Docs, founded by filmmaker Paul Jay, is a North American documentary film festival. Toronto has the largest number of film festivals in the world, ranging from cultural, independent, and historic films.
The Seattle International Film Festival, which screens 270 features and approximately 150 short films, is the largest American film festival in terms of the number of feature productions.
The Expresión en Corto International Film Festival is the largest competitive film festival in Mexico. It specializes in emerging talent and is held in the last week of each July in the two colonial cities of San Miguel de Allende and Guanajuato.
Other Mexican festivals include the Guadalajara International Film Festival in Guadalajara, Oaxaca Film Fest, the Morelia International Film Festival in Morelia, Michoacan Mexico, and the Los Cabos International Film Festival founded by Scott Cross, Sean Cross, and Eduardo Sanchez Navarro, in Los Cabos, Baja Sur, Mexico are considered`{{by whom|date=October 2021}}`{=mediawiki} the most important film festivals in Latin America. In 2015, *Variety* called the Los Cabos International Film Festival the \"Cannes of Latin America\".
### South American film festivals {#south_american_film_festivals}
The Cartagena Film Festival, founded by Victor Nieto in 1960, is the oldest in Latin America. The Festival de Gramado (or Gramado Film Festival) Gramado, Brazil.
The Lima Film Festival is the leading film festival in Peru and one of the most important in Latin America. It is focused on Latin-American cinema and is organized each year by the Pontifical Catholic University of Peru.
The Valdivia International Film Festival is held annually in the city of Valdivia. It is arguably the most important film festival in Chile. There is also Filmambiente, held in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, an international festival on environmental films and videos.
### The Caribbean {#the_caribbean}
For Spanish-speaking countries, the Dominican International Film Festival occurs annually in Puerto Plata, Dominican Republic. As well as the Havana Film Festival was founded in 1979 and is the oldest continuous annual film festival in the Caribbean. Its focus is on Latin American cinema.
The Trinidad and Tobago Film Festival, founded in 2006, is dedicated to screening the newest films from the English-, Spanish, French- and Dutch-speaking Caribbean and the region\'s diaspora. It also seeks to facilitate the growth of Caribbean cinema by offering a wide-ranging industry programme and networking opportunities.
The Lusca Fantastic Film Fest (formerly Puerto Rico Horror Film Fest) was also founded in 2006 and is the first and only international fantastic film festival in the Caribbean devoted to sci-fi, thriller, fantasy, dark humor, bizarre, horror, anime, adventure, virtual reality, and animation in short and feature films.
| 961 |
Film festival
| 2 |
10,781 |
# Film festival
## Notable film festivals {#notable_film_festivals}
### European festivals {#european_festivals}
The most important European film festivals are the Venice Film Festival (late summer to early autumn), the Cannes Film Festival (late spring to early summer), and the Berlin International Film Festival (late winter to early spring), founded in 1932, 1946, and 1951 respectively. The Edinburgh International Film Festival, founded in 1946, is the world\'s oldest continually running film festival.
### Animation
Many film festivals are dedicated exclusively to animation.
- Annecy International Animated Film Festival (f. 1960---the oldest)
- Zagreb (f. 1972)
- Ottawa (f. 1976)
- Hiroshima (f. 1985)
- KROK (f. 1989)
- Anima Mundi (f. 1992)
- Fredrikstad Animation Festival (f. 1994)
- Animac (f. 1996)
- [ASIFAC Animation Festival and Conference](https://www.asifa-south.com/asifac-festival) (f. 2017)
Various regional festivals occur in various countries. The Austin Film Festival is accredited by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts & Sciences, which makes all its jury-award-winning narrative short and animated short films eligible for an Academy Award.
### African festivals {#african_festivals}
There are several significant film festivals held regularly in Africa. The Cairo International Film Festival in Cairo was established in 1976, the biannual Panafrican Film and Television Festival of Ouagadougou (FESPACO) in Burkina Faso was established in 1969 and accepts competition-only films by African filmmakers and chiefly produced in Africa. The annual Durban International Film Festival in South Africa and Zanzibar International Film Festival in Tanzania have grown in importance for the film and entertainment industry, as they often screen the African premieres of many international films. The Nairobi Film Festival (NBO), which was established in 2016 with a special focus on screening exceptional films from around the world that are rarely presented in Nairobi\'s mainstream cinema and spotlighting the best Kenyan films, has also been growing in popularity over the years and has improved the cinema-going culture in Kenya.
The Sahara International Film Festival, held annually in the Sahrawi refugee camps in western Algeria near the border of Western Sahara, is notable as the only film festival in the world to take place in a refugee camp. The festival aims to provide cultural entertainment and educational opportunities to refugees and raise awareness of the plight of the Sahrawi people, who have been exiled from their native Western Sahara for more than three decades.
### Asian film festivals {#asian_film_festivals}
#### India
The International Film Festival of India in Goa, organized by the government of India, was founded in 1952.
Chennai International Film Festival has been organized since 2002 by the Indo Cine Appreciation Foundation (ICAF), the Government of Tamil Nadu, the South Indian Film Chamber of Commerce, and the Film Federation of India.
The Jaipur International Film Festival was founded in 2009 and International Film Festival of Kerala organized by the Government of Kerala held annually at Thiruvananthapuram.
The International Documentary and Short Film Festival of Kerala (IDSFFK), hosted by the Kerala State Chalachitra Academy, is a major documentary and short film festival.
The Mumbai Women\'s International Film Festival (MWIFF) is an annual film festival in Mumbai that features films made by women directors and technicians.
The Calcutta International Cult Films Festival (CICFF) is a popular international film festival based in Kolkata which showcases international cult films.
YathaKatha International Film & Literature Festival (YKIFLF) is an annual film & literature festival in Mumbai showcasing literature collaboration in cinema via various constructive discussions and forums. 3rd edition of the festival was held from 28 November-1 December 2024 in Mumbai, Maharashtra, India.
#### Others
Notable festivals include the Hong Kong International Film Festival (HKIFF), Busan International Film Festival (BIFF), Kathmandu International Mountain Film Festival, Melbourne International Film Festival (MIFF) and World Film Carnival Singapore.
### Arab World film festivals {#arab_world_film_festivals}
There are several major film festivals in the Arab world, such as the Beirut International Film Festival, Cairo International Film Festival, the only international competitive feature film festival recognized by the FIAPF in the Arab world and Africa, as well as the oldest in this category, Carthage Film Festival, the oldest festival in Africa and the Arab world, Alexandria International Film Festival, and Marrakech International Film Festival.
| 686 |
Film festival
| 3 |
10,781 |
# Film festival
## Festival administration {#festival_administration}
### Business model {#business_model}
Although there are notable for-profit festivals such as SXSW, most festivals operate on a nonprofit membership-based model, with a combination of ticket sales, membership fees, and corporate sponsorship constituting the majority of revenue. Unlike other arts nonprofits (performing arts, museums, etc.), film festivals typically receive few donations from the general public and are occasionally organized as nonprofit business associations instead of public charities. Film industry members often have significant curatorial input, and corporate sponsors are given opportunities to promote their brand to festival audiences in exchange for cash contributions. Private parties, usually to raise investments for film projects, constitute significant \"fringe\" events. More prominent festivals maintain year-round staff frequently engaging in community and charitable projects outside the festival season.
### Entry fee {#entry_fee}
While entries from established film professionals are usually considered pluses by the organizers, most festivals require new or relatively unknown filmmakers to pay an entry fee to have their works considered for screening. This is especially so in more significant film festivals, such as the Calcutta International Cult Films Festival, Jaipur International Film Festival, Toronto International Film Festival, Sundance Film Festival, South by Southwest, Montreal World Film Festival, and even smaller \"boutique\" festivals such as the Miami International Film Festival, British Urban Film Festival and Mumbai Women\'s International Film Festival.
On the other hand, some festivals---usually those accepting fewer films and perhaps not attracting as many big names in their audiences as do Sundance and Telluride, require no entry fee. Many smaller film festivals in the United States, such as the Stony Brook Film Festival on Long Island, the Northwest Filmmakers\' Festival, and the Sicilian Film Festival in Miami), are examples.
The Portland International Film Festival charges an entry fee but waives it for filmmakers from the Northwestern United States, and some others with regional focuses have similar approaches.
Several film festival submission portal websites exist to streamline filmmakers\' entries into multiple festivals. They provide databases of festival calls for entry and offer filmmakers a convenient \"describe once, submit many\" service.
### Screening out of competition {#screening_out_of_competition}
The core tradition of film festivals is competition, or judging which films most deserve various forms of recognition. Some festivals, such as the famous Cannes Film Festival, may screen films that are considered close to competition-quality without being included in the competition; the films are said to be screened \"out of competition\"
| 403 |
Film festival
| 4 |
10,787 |
# Cinema of Italy
The **cinema of Italy** (*cinema italiano*, `{{IPA|it|ˈtʃiːnema itaˈljaːno|pron}}`{=mediawiki}) comprises the films made within Italy or by Italian directors. Since its beginning, Italian cinema has influenced film movements worldwide. Italy is one of the birthplaces of art cinema and the stylistic aspect of film has been one of the most important factors in the history of Italian film. As of 2018, Italian films have won 14 Academy Awards for Best Foreign Language Film (the most of any country) as well as 12 Palmes d\'Or (the second-most of any country), one Academy Award for Best Picture and many Golden Lions and Golden Bears.
The history of Italian cinema began a few months after the Lumière brothers began motion picture exhibitions. The first Italian director is considered to be Vittorio Calcina, a collaborator of the Lumière Brothers later active from 1896 to 1905. The first films date back to 1896 and were made in the main cities of the Italian peninsula. These brief experiments immediately met the curiosity of the popular class, encouraging operators to produce new films until they laid the foundations for the birth of a true film industry. In the early 1900s, artistic and epic films such as *Otello* (1906), *The Last Days of Pompeii* (1908), *L\'Inferno* (1911), *Quo Vadis* (1913), and *Cabiria* (1914), were made as adaptations of books or stage plays. Italian filmmakers were using complex set designs, lavish costumes, and record budgets, to produce pioneering films. In the early years of the 20th century, silent cinema developed, bringing numerous Italian stars to the forefront until the end of World War I.
The oldest European avant-garde cinema movement, Italian futurism, took place in the late 1910s. After a period of decline in the 1920s, the Italian film industry was revitalized in the 1930s with the arrival of sound film. A popular Italian genre during this period, the Telefoni Bianchi, consisted of comedies with glamorous backgrounds. Calligrafismo was instead in sharp contrast to Telefoni Bianchi-American style comedies and is rather artistic, highly formalistic, expressive in complexity and deals mainly with contemporary literary material. While Italy\'s Fascist government provided financial support for the nation\'s film industry, notably the construction of the Cinecittà studios (the largest film studio in Europe), it also engaged in censorship, and thus many Italian films produced in the late 1930s were propaganda films. A new era took place at the end of World War II with the birth of the influential Italian neorealist movement, reaching a vast consensus of audiences and critics throughout the post-war period, and which launched the directorial careers of Luchino Visconti, Roberto Rossellini, and Vittorio De Sica. Neorealism declined in the late 1950s in favour of lighter films, such as those of the Commedia all\'italiana genre and important directors like Federico Fellini and Michelangelo Antonioni. Actresses such as Sophia Loren, Giulietta Masina and Gina Lollobrigida achieved international stardom during this period.
From the mid-1950s to the end of the 1970s, Commedia all\'italiana and many other genres arose due to auteur cinema, and Italian cinema reached a position of great prestige both nationally and abroad. The Spaghetti Western achieved popularity in the mid-1960s, peaking with Sergio Leone\'s Dollars Trilogy, which featured enigmatic scores by composer Ennio Morricone, which have become popular culture icons of the Western genre. Erotic Italian thrillers, or giallo, produced by directors such as Mario Bava and Dario Argento in the 1970s, influenced the horror genre worldwide. Since the 1980s, due to multiple factors, Italian production has gone through a crisis that has not prevented the production of quality films in the 1990s and into the new millennium, thanks to a revival of Italian cinema, awarded and appreciated all over the world. During the 1980s and 1990s, directors such as Ermanno Olmi, Bernardo Bertolucci, Giuseppe Tornatore, Gabriele Salvatores and Roberto Benigni brought critical acclaim back to Italian cinema, while the most popular directors of the 2000s and 2010s were Matteo Garrone, Paolo Sorrentino, Marco Bellocchio, Nanni Moretti and Marco Tullio Giordana.
The country is also famed for its prestigious Venice Film Festival, the oldest film festival in the world, held annually since 1932 and awarding the Golden Lion; In 2008 the Venice Days (\"Giornate degli Autori\"), a section held in parallel to the Venice Film Festival, has produced in collaboration with Cinecittà studios and the Ministry of Cultural Heritage a list of a 100 films that have changed the collective memory of the country between 1942 and 1978: the \"100 Italian films to be saved\".
The David di Donatello Awards are one of the most prestigious awards at national level. Presented by the Accademia del Cinema Italiano in the Cinecittà studios, during the awards ceremony, the winners are given a miniature reproduction of the famous statue. The finalist candidates for the award, as per tradition, are first received at the Quirinal Palace by the President of Italy. The event is the Italian equivalent of the American Academy Awards.
| 822 |
Cinema of Italy
| 0 |
10,787 |
# Cinema of Italy
## History
### 1890s
thumb\|thumbtime=1\|left\|Video of *Il finto storpio al Castello Sforzesco* (\"The fake cripple at the Castello Sforzesco\") by Italo Pacchioni (1896)
The history of Italian cinema began a few months after the French Lumière brothers, who made the first public screening of a film on 28 December 1895, an event considered the birth of cinema, began motion picture exhibitions. The first Italian director is considered to be Vittorio Calcina, a collaborator of the Lumière Brothers, who became the official photographer of the House of Savoy, the Italian ruling dynasty from 1861 to 1946. In this role he filmed in 1896 the first Italian film, *Sua Maestà il Re Umberto e Sua Maestà la Regina Margherita a passeggio per il parco a Monza* (\"His Majesty the King Umberto and Her Majesty the Queen Margherita strolling through the Monza Park\"), believed to have been lost until it was rediscovered by the Cineteca Nazionale in 1979.
The Lumière brothers commenced public screenings in Italy in 1896 starting in March, in Rome and Milan; in April in Naples, Salerno and Bari; in June in Livorno; in August in Bergamo, Bologna and Ravenna; in October in Ancona; and in December in Turin, Pescara and Reggio Calabria. Not long before, in 1895, Filoteo Alberini patented his \"kinetograph\", a shooting and projecting device not unlike that of the Lumières brothers.
Italian Lumière trainees produced short films documenting everyday life and comic strips in the late 1890s and early 1900s. Before long, other pioneers made their way. Italo Pacchioni, Arturo Ambrosio, Giovanni Vitrotti and Roberto Omegna were also active. The success of the short films was immediate. The cinema fascinated with its ability to show distant geographic realities with unprecedented precision and, vice versa, to immortalize everyday moments. Sporting events, local events, intense road traffic, the arrival of a train, visits by famous people, but also natural disasters and calamities are filmed.
Titles of the time include, *Arrivo del treno alla Stazione di Milano* (\"Arrival of the train at Milan station\") (1896), *La battaglia di neve* (\"The snow battle\") (1896), *La gabbia dei matti* (\"The madmen\'s cage\") (1896), *Ballo in famiglia* (\"Family dance\") (1896), *Il finto storpio al Castello Sforzesco* (\"The fake cripple at the Castello Sforzesco\") (1896) and *La Fiera di Porta Genova* (\"The fair of Porta Genova\") (1898), all shot by Italo Pacchioni, who was also the inventor of a camera and projector, inspired by the cinematograph of Lumière brothers, kept at the Cineteca Italiana in Milan.
If the interest of the masses were enthusiastic, the technological novelty would likely be snubbed, at least at the beginning, by intellectuals and the press. Despite initial doubt, in just two years, cinema climbs the hierarchy of society, intriguing the wealthier classes. On 28 January 1897, prince Victor Emmanuel and princess Elena of Montenegro attended a screening organized by Vittorio Calcina, in a room of the Pitti Palace in Florence. Interested in experimenting with the new medium, they were filmed in *S.A.R. il Principe di Napoli e la Principessa Elena visitano il battistero di S. Giovanni a Firenze* (\"Their real heights the Prince of Naples and Princess Elena visit the baptistery of Saint John in Florence\") and on the day of their wedding in *Dimostrazione popolare alle LL. AA. i Principi sposi (al Pantheon -- Roma)* (\"Popular demonstration at their heights the princes spouses (at the Pantheon -- Rome)\").
| 566 |
Cinema of Italy
| 1 |
10,787 |
# Cinema of Italy
## History
### 1900s {#s_1}
In the early years of the 20th century, the phenomenon of itinerant cinemas developed throughout Italy, providing literacy of the visual medium. This innovative form of spectacle ran out, in a short time, a number of optical attractions such as magic lanterns, cinematographers, stereoscopes, panoramas and dioramas that had fueled the European imagination and favoured the circulation of a common market for images. The nascent Italian cinema, therefore, is still linked to the traditional shows of the *commedia dell\'arte* or to those typical of circus folklore. Public screenings take place in the streets, in cafes or in variety theatres in the presence of a swindler who has the task of promoting and enriching the story.
Between 1903 and 1909 the itinerant cinema Italian film was quieting, until then considered as a freak phenomenon, took on consistency assuming the characteristics of an authentic industry, led by four major organizations: Titanus (originally *Monopolio Lombardo*), the first italian film production company and the largest and probably the most famous film house in Italy founded by Gustavo Lombardo at Naples in 1904, Cines, based in Rome; and the Turin-based companies Ambrosio Film and Itala Film. Other companies soon followed in Milan, and these early companies quickly attained a respectable production quality and were able to market their products both within Italy and abroad. Early Italian films typically consisted of adaptations of books or stage plays, such as Mario Caserini\'s *Otello* (1906) and Arturo Ambrosio\'s 1908 *The Last Days of Pompeii*, an adaptation of the homonymous novel by Edward Bulwer-Lytton. Also popular during this period were films about historical figures, such as Caserini\'s *Beatrice Cenci* (1909) and Ugo Falena\'s *Lucrezia Borgia* (1910).
In 1905, Cines inaugurated the genre of the historical film, which in this decade gave a great fortune to many Italian filmmakers. One of the first of these films was *La presa di Roma* (1905), lasting 10 minutes, and made by Filoteo Alberini. The operator employs for the first time actors of theatrical origin, exploiting the historical argument in a popular and pedagogical key. The film, assimilating Manzoni\'s lesson of making historical fiction plausible, reconstructs the Capture of Rome on 20 September 1870.
The discovery of the spectacular potential of the cinematographic medium favoured the development of a cinema with great ambitions, capable of incorporating all the cultural and historical suggestions of the country. Education is an inexhaustible source of ideas, ideas that are easily assimilated not only by a cultured public but also by the masses. Dozens of characters from texts make their appearance on the big screen such as the Count of Monte Cristo, Giordano Bruno, Judith beheading Holofernes, Francesca da Rimini, Lorenzino de\' Medici, Rigoletto, Count Ugolino and others. From an iconographic point of view, the main references are the great Renaissance and neoclassical artists, as well as symbolists and popular illustrations.
| 481 |
Cinema of Italy
| 2 |
10,787 |
# Cinema of Italy
## History
### 1910s {#s_2}
In the 1910s, the Italian film industry developed rapidly. In 1912, the year of the greatest expansion, 569 films were produced in Turin, 420 in Rome and 120 in Milan. Popular early Italian actors included Emilio Ghione, Alberto Collo, Bartolomeo Pagano, Amleto Novelli, Lyda Borelli, Ida Carloni Talli, Lidia Quaranta and Maria Jacobini.
*Lost in the Dark*, silent drama film directed by Nino Martoglio and produced in 1914, documented life in the slums of Naples, and is considered a precursor to the Italian neorealism movement of the 1940s and 1950s. The only surviving copy of this film was destroyed by Nazi German forces during the World War II. This film is based on a 1901 play of the same title by Roberto Bracco.
In the three years leading up to World War I, as production consolidates, mythological, comedy and drama films are exported all over the world. In the meantime, in the actor\'s field, the phenomenon of stardom was born which for a few years will experience unstoppable success. With the end of the decade, Rome definitively established itself as the main production center; this will remain, despite the crises that will periodically shake the industry, right up to the present day.
#### Historical blockbusters (1910s) {#historical_blockbusters_1910s}
The archetypes of this film genre were *The Last Days of Pompeii* (1908), by Arturo Ambrosio and Luigi Maggi and *Nero* (1909), by Maggi himself and Arrigo Frusta. This last film was inspired by the work of Pietro Cossa who is iconographically based on the etchings of Bartolomeo Pinelli, neoclassicism and the show *Nero, or the Destruction of Rome* represented by the Barnum circus. Followed by *Marin Faliero, Doge of Venice* (1909), by Giuseppe De Liguoro, *Otello* (1909) by Yambo and *L\'Odissea* (1911), by Bertolini, Padovan and De Liguoro.
*L\'Inferno*, produced by Milano Films in 1911, even before being an adaptation of Dante\'s canticle, was a cinematic translation of Gustave Doré\'s engravings that experiments with the integration of optical effects and stage action, and it was the first Italian feature film ever made. *The Last Days of Pompeii* (1913), by Eleuterio Rodolfi, used innovative special effects.
Enrico Guazzoni\'s 1913 film *Quo Vadis* was one of the first blockbusters in the history of cinema, using thousands of extras and a lavish set design. The international success of the film marked the maturation of the genre and allows Guazzoni to make increasingly spectacular films such as *Antony and Cleopatra* (1913) and *Julius Caesar* (1914). Giovanni Pastrone\'s 1914 film *Cabiria* was an even larger production, requiring two years and a record budget to produce, it was the first epic film ever made and it is considered the most famous Italian silent film. It was also the first film in history to be shown in the White House. After Guazzoni came Emilio Ghione, Febo Mari, Carmine Gallone, Giulio Antamoro and many others who contributed to the expansion of the genre.
After the great success of *Cabiria*, with the changing tastes of the public and the first signs of the industrial crisis, the genre began to show signs of crisis. Pastrone\'s plan to adapt the *Bible* with thousands of extras remained unfulfilled. Antamoro\'s *Christus* (1916) and Guazzoni\'s *The Crusaders* (1918) remained notable for their iconographic complexity but offered no substantial novelties. Despite sporadic attempts to reconnect with the *grandeur* of the past, the trend of historical blockbusters was interrupted at the beginning of the 1920s.
#### Proto-giallo (1910s) {#proto_giallo_1910s}
In the first and second decade of the 20th century came a prolific film production aimed at investigative and mystery content, supported by well-assorted Italian and foreign literature that favours its transposition into film. What would later take on the synthesis of the *giallo*, in fact, was produced and distributed at the dawn of Italian cinema. The most prolific production houses in the 1910s were Cines, Ambrosio Film, Itala Film, Aquila Films, Milano Films and many others, while titles such as *Il delitto del magistrato* (1907), *Il cadavere misterioso* (1908), *Il piccolo Sherlock Holmes* (1909), *L\'abisso* (1910) and *Alibi atroce* (1910), breached the imagination of the first cinema users who demanded a greater offer. The popular consensus is remarkable to the point of encouraging the film industry to invest further production resources since these films are also distributed on the French and Anglo-Saxon markets. Thus directors among the most prolific in this field such as Oreste Mentasti, Luigi Maggi, Arrigo Frusta and Ubaldo Maria Del Colle, together with many others less known, direct several dozen films where classic narrative elements of the silent proto-giallo (mystery, crime, investigation investigative and final twist) constitute the structural aspects of cinematic representation.
Elvira Notari, the first female director ever in Italy and one of the premieres in the history of world cinema, directed *Carmela, la sartina di Montesanto* (1916). While in Palermo, Lucarelli Film produced *La cassaforte n. 8* (1914) and *Ipnotismo* (1914), the Azzurri Film *La regina della notte* (1915), the Lumen Film *Il romanzo fantastico del Dr. Mercanton o il giustiziere invisibile* (1915) and *Profumo mortale* (1915), all films ascribable to the proto-giallo that multiplied in the following decades, becoming preparatory to the subsequent birth of the *giallo*.
#### Stardom (1910s) {#stardom_1910s}
Between 1913 and 1920 there was the rise, development and decline of the phenomenon of cinematographic stardom, born with the release of *Ma l\'amor mio non muore* (1913), by Mario Caserini. The film had great success with the public and encoded the setting and aesthetics of female stardom. Within just a few years, Eleonora Duse, Pina Menichelli, Rina De Liguoro, Leda Gys, Hesperia, Vittoria Lepanto, Mary Cleo Tarlarini and Italia Almirante Manzini established themselves.
Films such as *Fior di male* (1914), by Carmine Gallone, *Il fuoco* (1915), by Giovanni Pastrone, *Rapsodia satanica* (1917), by Nino Oxilia and *Cenere* (1917), by Febo Mari, changed the national costume, imposing canons of beauty, role models and objects of desire. These models, strongly stylized according to the cultural and artistic trends of the time, moved away from naturalism in favor of melodramatic acting, pictorial gesture and theatrical pose; all favored by the incessant use of close-up which focuses the attention on the expressiveness of the actress.
#### Comic short films (1910s) {#comic_short_films_1910s}
The most successful comedian in Italy was André Deed, better known in Italy as *Cretinetti*, star of comic short film for Itala Film. Its success paved the way for Marcel Fabre (*Robinet*), Ernesto Vaser (*Fricot*) and many others. The only actor of a certain substance, however, was Ferdinand Guillaume, who became famous with the stage name of *Polidor*.
The historical interest of these films lay in their ability to reveal the aspirations and fears of a petty-bourgeois society torn between the desire for affirmation and the uncertainties of the present. It was significant that the protagonists of Italian comedians never place themselves in open contrast with society or embody the desire for social revenge (as happens for example with Charlie Chaplin), but rather tried to integrate into a strongly desired world.
| 1,169 |
Cinema of Italy
| 3 |
10,787 |
# Cinema of Italy
## History
### 1910s {#s_2}
#### Futurist cinema (1910s) {#futurist_cinema_1910s}
Italian futurist cinema was the oldest movement of European avant-garde cinema. Italian futurism, an artistic and social movement, impacted the Italian film industry from 1916 to 1919. It influenced Russian Futurist cinema and German Expressionist cinema. Its cultural importance was considerable and influenced all subsequent avant-gardes, as well as some authors of narrative cinema; its echo expands to the dreamlike visions of some films by Alfred Hitchcock.
Futurism emphasized dynamism, speed, technology, youth, violence, and objects such as the car, the airplane, and the industrial city. Its key figures were the Italians Filippo Tommaso Marinetti, Umberto Boccioni, Carlo Carrà, Fortunato Depero, Gino Severini, Giacomo Balla, and Luigi Russolo. It glorified modernity and aimed to liberate Italy from the weight of its past.
The 1916 Manifesto of Futuristic Cinematography was signed by Filippo Tommaso Marinetti, Armando Ginna, Bruno Corra, Giacomo Balla and others. To the Futurists, cinema was an ideal art form, being a fresh medium, and able to be manipulated by speed, special effects and editing. Most of the futuristic-themed films of this period have been lost, but critics cite *Thaïs* (1917) by Anton Giulio Bragaglia as one of the most influential, serving as the main inspiration for German Expressionist cinema in the following decade.
The Italian film industry struggled against rising foreign competition in the years following World War I. Several major studios, among them Cines and Ambrosio, formed the Unione Cinematografica Italiana to coordinate a national strategy for film production. This effort was largely unsuccessful, however, due to a wide disconnect between production and exhibition (some movies weren\'t released until several years after they were produced).
| 282 |
Cinema of Italy
| 4 |
10,787 |
# Cinema of Italy
## History
### 1920s {#s_3}
With the end of World War I, Italian cinema went through a period of crisis due to many factors such as production disorganization, increased costs, technological backwardness, loss of foreign markets and inability to cope with international competition, in particular with that of Hollywood. The main causes included the lack of a generational change with a production still dominated by filmmakers and producers of literary training, unable to face the challenges of modernity. The first half of the 1920s marked a sharp decrease in production; from 350 films produced in 1921 to 60 in 1924.
Literature and theatre are still the preferred narrative sources. The feuilletons resist, mostly taken from classical or popular texts and directed by specialists such as Roberto Roberti and the religious blockbusters of Giulio Antamoro. On the basis of the latest generation of divas, a sentimental cinema for women spread, centred on figures on the margins of society who, instead of struggling to emancipate themselves (as happens in contemporary Hollywood cinema), go through an authentic ordeal in order to preserve their own virtue. Protest and rebellion by the female protagonists are out of the question. It is a strongly conservative cinema, tied to social rules upset by the war and in the process of dissolution throughout Europe. An exemplary case is that of *A Woman\'s Story* (1920) by Eugenio Perego, which uses an original narrative construction to propose a 19th-century morality with melodramatic tones.
A particular genre is that of a realist setting, due to the work of the first female director of Italian cinema, Elvira Notari, who directs numerous films influenced by popular theatre and taken from famous dramas, Neapolitan songs, appendix novels or inspired by facts of chronicle. Another film with a realist setting is *Lost in the Dark* (1914) by director Nino Martoglio, considered by critics as a prime example of neorealist cinema.
The revival of Italian cinema took place at the end of the decade with the production of larger-scale films. During this period, a group of intellectuals close to the fortnightly *cinematografo* led by Alessandro Blasetti launched a program that was as simple as it was ambitious. Aware of the Italian cultural backwardness, they decided to break all ties with the previous tradition through a rediscovery of the peasant world, hitherto practically absent in Italian cinema. *Sun* (1929) by Alessandro Blasetti shows the evident influence of the Soviet and German avant-gardes in an attempt to renew Italian cinema in accordance with the interests of the fascist regime. *Rails* (1929) by Mario Camerini blends the traditional genre of comedy with kammerspiel and realist film, revealing the director\'s ability to outline the characters of the middle class. While not comparable to the best results of international cinema of the period, the works of Camerini and Blasetti testify to a generational transition between Italian directors and intellectuals, and above all an emancipation from literary models and an approach to the tastes of the public.
| 499 |
Cinema of Italy
| 5 |
10,787 |
# Cinema of Italy
## History
### 1930s {#s_4}
The sound cinema arrived in Italy in 1930, three years after the release of *The Jazz Singer* (1927), and immediately led to a debate on the validity of spoken cinema and its relationship with the theatre. Some directors enthusiastically face the new challenge. The advent of talkies led to stricter censorship by the Fascist government.
The first Italian talking picture was *The Song of Love* (1930) by Gennaro Righelli, which was a great success with the public. Alessandro Blasetti also experimented with the use of an optical track for sound in the film *Resurrection* (1931), shot before *The Song of Love* but released a few months later. Similar to Righelli\'s film is *What Scoundrels Men Are!* (1932) by Mario Camerini, which has the merit of making Vittorio De Sica debut on the screens. Historical films such as Blasetti\'s *1860* (1934) and Carmine Gallone\'s *Scipio Africanus: The Defeat of Hannibal* (1937) were also popular during this period.
With the transition to sound cinema, most of the Italian silent film actors, still linked to theatrical stylization, find themselves disqualified. The era of divas, dandies and strongmen, who barely survived the 1920s, is definitely over. Even if some performers will move on to directing or producing, the arrival of sound favours the generational change and the consequent modernization of the structures.
Italian-born director Frank Capra received three Academy Awards for Best Director for the films *It Happened One Night* (1934, the first Big Five winner at the Academy Awards), *Mr. Deeds Goes to Town* (1936) and *You Can\'t Take It with You* (1938).
In 1932, the Venice Film Festival, the world\'s oldest film festival and one of the \"Big Three\" film festivals, alongside the Cannes Film Festival and the Berlin International Film Festival, was established.
#### Cinecittà (1930s--present) {#cinecittà_1930spresent}
In 1934, the Italian government created the General Directorate for Cinema (*Direzione Generale per le Cinematografia*), and appointed Luigi Freddi its director. With the approval of Benito Mussolini, this directorate called for the establishment of a town southeast of Rome devoted exclusively to cinema, dubbed the Cinecittà (\"Cinema City\"), under the slogan \"*Il cinema è l\'arma più forte*\" (\"Cinema is the most powerful weapon\"). The studios were constructed during the Fascist era as part of a plan to revive the Italian film industry, which had reached its low point in 1931.
Mussolini himself inaugurated the studios on 21 April 1937. Post-production units and sets were constructed and heavily used initially. Early films such as *Scipio Africanus* (1937) and *The Iron Crown* (1941) showcased the technological advancement of the studios. Seven thousand people were involved in the filming of the battle scene from *Scipio Africanus*, and live elephants were brought in as a part of the re-enactment of the Battle of Zama.
The Cinecittà provided everything necessary for filmmaking: theatres, technical services, and even a cinematography school, the Centro Sperimentale di Cinematografia, for younger apprentices. The Cinecittà studios were Europe\'s most advanced production facilities and greatly boosted the technical quality of Italian films. Many films are still shot entirely in Cinecittà. Benito Mussolini founded Cinecittà studio also for the production of Fascist propaganda until World War II.
During this period, Mussolini\'s son, Vittorio, created a national production company and organized the work of noted authors, directors and actors (including even some political opponents), thereby creating an interesting communication network among them, which produced several noted friendships and stimulated cultural interaction.
With an area of 400,000 square metres (99 acres), it is still the largest film studio in Europe, and is considered the hub of Italian cinema. Filmmakers such as Federico Fellini, Roberto Rossellini, Luchino Visconti, Sergio Leone, Bernardo Bertolucci, Francis Ford Coppola, Martin Scorsese, and Mel Gibson have worked at Cinecittà. More than 3,000 movies have been filmed there, of which 90 received an Academy Award nomination and 47 of these won it.
#### Telefoni Bianchi (1930s--1940s) {#telefoni_bianchi_1930s1940s}
During the 1930s, light comedies known as Telefoni Bianchi (\"white telephones\") were predominant in Italian cinema. These films, which featured lavish set designs, promoted conservative values and respect for authority, and thus typically avoided the scrutiny of government censors. Telefoni Bianchi proved to be the testing ground of numerous screenwriters destined to impose themselves in the following decades (including Cesare Zavattini and Sergio Amidei), and above all of numerous set designers such as Guido Fiorini, Gino Carlo Sensani and Antonio Valente, who, by virtue, successful graphic inventions led these productions to become a kind of \"summa\" of the petty-bourgeois aesthetics of the time.
The first film of the genre Telefoni Bianchi was *The Private Secretary* (1931), by Goffredo Alessandrini. Among the authors, Mario Camerini is the most representative director of the genre. After having practiced the most diverse trends in the 1930s, he happily moved into the territory of sentimental comedy with *What Scoundrels Men Are!* (1932), *Il signor Max* (1937) and *Department Store* (1939). In other films, he compares himself with the Hollywood-style comedy on the model of Frank Capra (*Heartbeat*, 1939) and the surreal one of René Clair (*I\'ll Give a Million*, 1936). Camerini is interested in the figure of the typical and popular Italian, so much so that he anticipates some elements of the future Italian comedy. His major interpreter, Vittorio De Sica, will continue his lesson in *Maddalena, Zero for Conduct* (1940) and *Teresa Venerdì* (1941), emphasizing above all the direction of the actors and the care for the settings.
Other directors include Mario Mattoli (*Schoolgirl Diary*, 1941), Jean de Limur (*Apparition*, 1944) and Max Neufeld (*The House of Shame*, 1938; *A Thousand Lire a Month*, 1939). The realist comedies of Mario Bonnard (*Before the Postman*, 1942; *The Peddler and the Lady*, 1943) are partially different in character, which partially deviate from the imprint of Telefoni Bianchi.
| 963 |
Cinema of Italy
| 6 |
10,787 |
# Cinema of Italy
## History
### 1930s {#s_4}
#### Fascist propaganda (1930s--1940s) {#fascist_propaganda_1930s1940s}
In the fascist propaganda cinema, at the beginning, the representations of the squads and the first fascist actions were rare. *The Old Guard* (1934), by Alessandro Blasetti evokes the supposed vitalistic spontaneity of squads with populist tones, but is not appreciated by official critics. *Black Shirt* (1933), by Giovacchino Forzano, made for the 10th anniversary of the March on Rome, celebrated the regime\'s policies (the reclamation of the Pontine marshes and the construction of Littoria) alternating narrative sequences with documentary passages.
With political consolidation, the government authority required the film industry to strengthen the regime\'s identification with the country\'s history and culture. Hence the intention to reread Italian history in an authoritarian perspective, teleologically reducing every past event to a harbinger of the \"fascist revolution\", in continuity with the historiographical work of Gioacchino Volpe. After the first attempts in this direction, aimed above all at underlining the alleged link between the Risorgimento and Fascism (*Villafranca* by Forzano, 1933; *1860* by Blasetti, 1933), the trend reached its peak just before the war. *Cavalry* (1936), by Goffredo Alessandrini, evokes the nobility of the Savoy fighters by presenting their deeds as anticipations of squads. *Condottieri* (1937) by Luis Trenker, tells the story of Giovanni delle Bande Nere, explicitly establishing a parallel with Benito Mussolini, while *Scipio Africanus: The Defeat of Hannibal* (1937) by Carmine Gallone (one of the greatest financial efforts of the time), it celebrates the Roman Empire and indirectly the Fascist Empire.
The invasion of Ethiopia gives Italian directors the opportunity to extend the horizons of the settings. *The Great Appeal* (1936) by Mario Camerini, exalts imperialism by describing the \"new land\" as an opportunity for work and redemption, contrasting the heroism of young soldiers with bourgeois fearlessness. The anti-pacifist controversy that accompanies colonial enterprises is also evident in *Lo squadrone bianco* (1936) by Augusto Genina, which combines propaganda rhetoric with notable battle sequences shot in the Italian Tripolitania desert. Most of the films celebrating the empire are predominantly documentaries, aimed at disguising the war as a struggle of civilization against barbarism. The Spanish Civil War is described in the documentaries *Los novios de la muerte* (1936) by Romolo Marcellini and *Arriba España, España una, grande, libre!* (1939) by Giorgio Ferroni, and is the backdrop for another dozen films, among which the most spectacular is *The Siege of the Alcazar* (1940) by Augusto Genina.
Films such as *Pietro Micca* (1938) by Aldo Vergano, *Ettore Fieramosca* (1938), made in the same year by Alessandro Blasetti, and *Fanfulla da Lodi* (1940) by Giulio Antamoro can also be counted as propaganda films (albeit indirect), in which, a pretext for the epic narration of historical events, a clear apology for dedication to the homeland (in some cases even to the point of personal sacrifice) is made in the same vein as colonial films with a contemporary setting.
With Italy\'s participation in World War II, the fascist regime further strengthens its control over production and requires a more decisive commitment to propaganda. In addition to the now canonical documentaries, short films and newsreels, there is also an increase in feature films in praise of Italian war enterprises. Among the most representative we find *Bengasi* (1942) by Genina, *Gente dell\'aria* (1943) by Esodo Pratelli, *The Three Pilots* (1942) by Mario Mattoli (based on a screenplay by Vittorio Mussolini), *Il treno crociato* (1943) by Carlo Campogalliani, *Harlem* (1943) by Carmine Gallone and *Men of the Mountain* (1943) by Aldo Vergano under the supervision of Blasetti. *Uomini sul fondo* (1941) by Francesco De Robertis is also notable due to its almost documentary approach.
The most successful film of the period is *We the Living* (1942) by Goffredo Alessandrini, made as a single film, but then distributed in two parts due to its excessive length. Referable to the genre of anti-communist drama, this sombre melodrama (set in the Soviet Union) is inspired by the novel of the same name by the writer Ayn Rand which exalts the most radical philosophical individualism. Precisely because of this generic criticism of authoritarianism, the diptych could be interpreted as a mild accusation against the fascist regime.
Among the directors who give their contribution to the war propaganda, there is also Roberto Rossellini, author of a trilogy composed of *The White Ship* (1941), *A Pilot Returns* (1942) and *The Man with a Cross* (1943). Anticipating in some ways his works of maturity, the director adopted a modest and immediate style, which does not contrast the effectiveness of the propaganda but neither does it exalt the dominant war rhetoric; it was the same anti-spectacular approach to which he remained faithful throughout his life.
| 781 |
Cinema of Italy
| 7 |
10,787 |
# Cinema of Italy
## History
### 1940s {#s_5}
#### Neorealism (1940s--1950s) {#neorealism_1940s1950s}
By the end of World War II, the Italian \"neorealist\" movement had begun to take shape. Neorealist films typically dealt with the working class (in contrast to the *Telefoni Bianchi*), and were shot on location. Many neorealist films, but not all, used non-professional actors. Though the term \"neorealism\" was used for the first time to describe Luchino Visconti's 1943 film, *Ossessione*, there were several important precursors to the movement, most notably Camerini\'s *What Scoundrels Men Are!* (1932), which was the first Italian film shot entirely on location, and Blasetti\'s 1942 film, *Four Steps in the Clouds*.
*Ossessione* angered Fascist officials. Upon viewing the film, Vittorio Mussolini is reported to have shouted, \"This is not Italy!\" before walking out of the theatre. The film was subsequently banned in the Fascist-controlled parts of Italy. While neorealism exploded after the war and was incredibly influential at the international level, neorealist films made up only a small percentage of Italian films produced during this period, as postwar Italian moviegoers preferred escapist comedies starring actors such as Totò and Alberto Sordi.
Neorealist works such as Roberto Rossellini\'s trilogy *Rome, Open City* (1945), *Paisà* (1946), and *Germany, Year Zero* (1948), with professional actors such as Anna Magnani and a number of non-professional actors, attempted to describe the difficult economic and moral conditions of postwar Italy and the changes in public mentality in everyday life. Visconti\'s *The Earth Trembles* (1948) was shot on location in a Sicilian fishing village and used local non-professional actors. Giuseppe De Santis, on other hand, used actors such as Silvana Mangano and Vittorio Gassman in his 1949 film, *Bitter Rice*, which is set in the Po Valley during rice-harvesting season.
Poetry and cruelty of life were harmonically combined in the works that Vittorio De Sica wrote and directed together with screenwriter Cesare Zavattini: among them, *Shoeshine* (1946), *The Bicycle Thief* (1948) and *Miracle in Milan* (1951). The 1952 film *Umberto D.* showed a poor old man with his little dog, who must beg for alms against his dignity in the loneliness of the new society. This work is perhaps De Sica\'s masterpiece and one of the most important works in Italian cinema. It was not a commercial success and since then it has been shown on Italian television only a few times. Yet it is perhaps the most violent attack, in the apparent quietness of the action, against the rules of the new economy, the new mentality, the new values, and it embodies both a conservative and a progressive view.
Although *Umberto D.* is considered the end of the neorealist period, later films such as Federico Fellini\'s *La Strada* (1954) and De Sica\'s 1960 film *Two Women* (for which Sophia Loren won the Oscar for Best Actress) are grouped with the genre. Director Pier Paolo Pasolini\'s first film, *Accattone* (1961), shows a strong neorealist influence. Italian neorealist cinema influenced filmmakers around the world, and helped inspire other film movements, such as the French New Wave and the Polish Film School. The Neorealist period is often simply referred to as \"The Golden Age\" of Italian cinema by critics, filmmakers, and scholars.
<File:Girotti> e Calamai.jpg\|*Ossessione* (1943), by Luchino Visconti. <File:Screenshot>, di Roma città aperta.jpg\|A still shot from *Rome, Open City* (1945), by Roberto Rossellini. LadriDiBicicletteStaiola1948.jpg\|*Bicycle Thieves* (1948), by Vittorio De Sica, ranked among the best movies ever made and part of the canon of classic cinema. Battle-of-Algiers-screenshot.jpg\|Gillo Pontecorvo\'s *The Battle of Algiers* (1966) is often associated with Italian neorealism.
#### Calligrafismo (1940s) {#calligrafismo_1940s}
Calligrafismo is in sharp contrast to Telefoni Bianchi-American style comedies and is rather artistic, highly formalistic, expressive in complexity and deals mainly with contemporary literary material, above all the pieces of Italian realism from authors like Corrado Alvaro, Ennio Flaiano, Emilio Cecchi, Francesco Pasinetti, Vitaliano Brancati, Mario Bonfantini and Umberto Barbaro.
The best-known exponent of this genre is Mario Soldati, a long-time writer and director destined to establish himself with films of literary ancestry and solid formal structure. His films put at the centre of the story characters endowed with a dramatic and psychological strength foreign to both white-phone cinema and propaganda films, and found in works such as *Dora Nelson* (1939), *Piccolo mondo antico* (1941), *Tragic Night* (1942), *Malombra* (1942) and *In High Places* (1943). Luigi Chiarini, already active as a critic, deepens the trend in his *Sleeping Beauty* (1942), *Street of the Five Moons* (1942) and *The Innkeeper* (1944). The internal conflicts of the characters and the scenographic richness are also recurrent in the first films by Alberto Lattuada (*Giacomo the Idealist*, 1943) and Renato Castellani (*A Pistol Shot*, 1942), dominated by a sense of moral and cultural decay that seems to anticipate the end of the war.
Another important example of a calligraphic film is the film version of *The Betrothed* (1941), by Mario Camerini (very faithful in the staging of Manzoni\'s masterpiece), which due to the perceived income, became the most popular feature film between 1941 and 1942.
| 834 |
Cinema of Italy
| 8 |
10,787 |
# Cinema of Italy
## History
### 1940s {#s_5}
#### Animation (1940s--present) {#animation_1940spresent}
The pioneer of the Italian cartoon was Francesco Guido, better known as Gibba. Immediately after the end of World War II, he produced the first animated medium-length film of Italian cinema entitled *L\'ultimo sciuscià* (1946), which took up themes typical of neorealism and in the following decade the feature films *Rompicollo and I picchiatelli*, in collaboration with Antonio Attanasi. In the 1970s, after many animated documentaries, Gibba himself will return to the feature film with the erotic *Il nano e la strega* (1973) and *Il racconto della giungla* (1974). Also interesting are the contributions of the painter and set designer Emanuele Luzzati who, after some valuable short films, made in 1976 one of the masterpieces of Italian animation: *Il flauto magico* (\"The Magic Flute\"), based on the homonymous opera by Mozart.
In 1949, the designer Nino Pagot presented *The Dynamite Brothers* at the Venice Film Festival, one of the first animated feature films of the time, released in theatres in conjunction with *La Rosa di Bagdad* (1949), made by the animator Anton Gino Domeneghini. In the early 1950s, the cartoonist Romano Scarpa created the short film *La piccola fiammiferaia* (1953), which remains, like the two previous films, little more than an isolated case. Apart from these examples, Italian animation in the 1950s and 1960s failed to become a major reality and remains confined to the television sector, due to the various commissions provided by the Carosello container.
But it is with Bruno Bozzetto that the Italian cartoon reaches an international dimension: his debut feature film *West and Soda* (1965), an irresistible caricature of the Western genre, received acclaim from both audiences and critics. A few years later his second work entitled *VIP my Brother Superman* was released, distributed in 1968. After many satirical short films (centred on the popular figure of \"Signor Rossi\") he returned to the feature film with what is considered his most ambitious work, *Allegro Non Troppo* (1977). Inspired by the well-known Disney *Fantasia*, it is a mixed media film, in which animated episodes are molded to the notes of many classical music pieces. Another illustrator to underline is the artist Pino Zac who in 1971 shot (again with mixed technique) *The Nonexistent Knight*, based on the novel of the same name by Italo Calvino.
In the 1990s, Italian animation entered a new phase of production due to the Turin Lanterna Magica studio which in 1996, under the direction of Enzo D\'Alò, created the intriguing Christmas fairy tale *How the Toys Saved Christmas*, based on a short story by Gianni Rodari. The film was a success and paved the way for other feature films. In fact, in 1998, *Lucky and Zorba* based on a novel by Luis Sepúlveda was distributed, which attracted the favour of the public, reaching a new apex in the Italian animated cinema.
The director Enzo d\'Alò, who separated from the Lanterna Magica studio, produced other films in the following years such as *Momo* (2001) and *Opopomoz* (2003). The Turin studio distributed on its behalf the films *Aida of the Trees* (2001) and *Totò Sapore e la magica storia della pizza* (2003), accompanied by a good response at the box office. In 2003, the first entirely Italian animated film in computer graphics was released entitled *L\'apetta Giulia and Signora Vita*, directed by Paolo Modugno. To underline the work *La Storia di Leo* (2007) by director Mario Cambi, winner, the following year, at the Giffoni Film Festival.
In 2010, the first Italian animated film in 3D technology was made, directed by Iginio Straffi, entitled *Winx Club 3D: Magical Adventure*, based on the homonymous series; in the meantime Enzo D\'Alò returns to theatres, presenting his *Pinocchio* (2012). In 2012, the film *Gladiators of Rome*, also shot in 3D technology, received credit from the public, followed by the feature film *Winx Club: The Mystery of the Abyss* (2014), both again by Iginio Straffi. Finally, *The Art of Happiness* (2013) by Alessandro Rak, a film made in Naples by 40 authors, including only 10 designers and animators from the Mad Entertainment studio, a true absolute record for an animated film was made. *Cinderella the Cat* (2017), taken from the text *Pentamerone* by Giambattista Basile, came out of the same studio. The work won two David di Donatello\'s, one of which was for special effects, becoming the first animated film to be nominated, and win, in this category.
| 742 |
Cinema of Italy
| 9 |
10,787 |
# Cinema of Italy
## History
### 1950s {#s_6}
Starting from the mid-1950s, Italian cinema freed itself from neorealism by tackling purely existential topics, films with different styles and points of view, often more introspective than descriptive. Thus we are witnessing a new flowering of filmmakers who contribute in a fundamental way to the development of the art.
Michelangelo Antonioni is the first to establish himself, becoming a reference author for all contemporary cinema. This charge of novelty is recognizable from the beginning as the director\'s first work, *Story of a Love Affair* (1950), marks an indelible break with the world of neorealism and the consequent birth of a modern cinema. Antonioni investigated the world of the Italian bourgeoisie with a critical eye, left out of the post-war cinematic lens. In doing so, works of psychological research such as *I Vinti* (1952), *The Lady Without Camelias* (1953) and *Le Amiche* (1955), free adaptation of the short story *Tra donne sole* by Cesare Pavese, came to light. In 1957, he staged the unusual proletarian drama *Il Grido*, with which he obtained critical acclaim.
In 1955, the David di Donatello was established, with its Best Picture category being awarded for the first time only in 1970. Named after Donatello\'s *David*, a symbolic statue of the Italian Renaissance, are film awards given out each year by the *Accademia del Cinema Italiano* (The Academy of Italian Cinema).
#### Federico Fellini (1950s--1990s) {#federico_fellini_1950s1990s}
Federico Fellini is recognized as one of the greatest and most influential filmmakers of all time. Fellini won the Palme d\'Or for *La Dolce Vita*, was nominated for twelve Academy Awards, and won four in the category of Best Foreign Language Film, the most for any director in the history of the academy. He received an honorary award for Lifetime Achievement at the 65th Academy Awards in Los Angeles. His other well-known films include *La Strada* (1954), *Nights of Cabiria* (1957), *Juliet of the Spirits* (1967), *Satyricon* (1969), *Roma* (1972), *Amarcord* (1973), and *Fellini\'s Casanova* (1976).
Personal and highly idiosyncratic visions of society, Fellini\'s films are a unique combination of memory, dreams, fantasy and desire. The adjectives \"Fellinian\" and \"Felliniesque\" are \"synonymous with any kind of extravagant, fanciful, even baroque image in the cinema and in art in general\". *La Dolce Vita* contributed the term *paparazzi* to the English language, derived from Paparazzo, the photographer friend of journalist Marcello Rubini (Marcello Mastroianni).
Contemporary filmmakers such as Tim Burton, Terry Gilliam, Emir Kusturica, and David Lynch have cited Fellini\'s influence on their work.
#### Pink neorealism (1950s--1960s) {#pink_neorealism_1950s1960s}
Although *Umberto D.* is considered the end of the neorealist period, subsequent works turned toward lighter, sweetened and mildly optimistic atmospheres, more coherent with the improving conditions of Italy just before the economic boom; this genre became known as *pink neorealism*.
The precursor of pink neorealism was Renato Castellani, who helped bring realist comedy into vogue with *Under the Sun of Rome* (1948) and *It\'s Forever Springtime* (1949), both shot on location and with non-professional actors, and above all with public success and criticism of *Two Cents Worth of Hope* (1952), which laid the foundations for pink neorealism.
Notable films of pink neorealism, which combine popular comedy and realist motifs, are *Pane, amore e fantasia* (1953) by Luigi Comencini and *Poveri ma belli* (1957) by Dino Risi, both works are in perfect harmony with the evolution of the Italian costume. The large influx at the box office from the two films remained almost unchanged in the sequels *Bread, Love and Jealousy* (1954), *Scandal in Sorrento* (1955) and *Pretty But Poor* (1957), also directed by Luigi Comencini and Dino Risi.
Similarly, stories of daily life told with gentle irony (without losing sight of the social fabric) can be found in the work of the Milanese Luciano Emmer, whose films *Sunday in August* (1950), *Three Girls from Rome* (1952) and *High School* (1954), are the best-known examples. Another film of the pink neorealism genre was *Susanna Whipped Cream* (1957) by Steno.
This trend allowed some actresses to become real celebrities, such as Sophia Loren, Gina Lollobrigida, Silvana Pampanini, Lucia Bosé, Barbara Bouchet, Eleonora Rossi Drago, Silvana Mangano, Virna Lisi, Claudia Cardinale and Stefania Sandrelli. Soon pink neorealism was replaced by the Commedia all\'italiana, a unique genre that, born on an ideally humouristic line, talked instead very seriously about important social themes.
| 724 |
Cinema of Italy
| 10 |
10,787 |
# Cinema of Italy
## History
### 1950s {#s_6}
#### Commedia all\'Italiana (1950s--1970s) {#commedia_allitaliana_1950s1970s}
Commedia all\'italiana (\"Comedy in the Italian way\") is an Italian film genre born in Italy in the 1950s and developed in the following 1960s and 1970s. It is widely considered to have started with Mario Monicelli\'s *Big Deal on Madonna Street* in 1958 and derives its name from the title of Pietro Germi\'s *Divorce Italian Style*, 1961. According to most of the critics, *La Terrazza* by Ettore Scola (1980) is the last work considered part of the Commedia all\'italiana.
Rather than a specific genre, the term indicates a period (approximately from the late 1950s to the early 1970s) in which the Italian film industry was producing many successful comedies, with some common traits like satire of manners, farcical and grotesque overtones, a strong focus on \"spicy\" social issues of the period (like sexual matters, divorce, contraception, marriage of the clergy, the economic rise of the country and its various consequences, the traditional religious influence of the Catholic Church) and a prevailing middle-class setting, often characterized by a substantial background of sadness and social criticism that diluted the comic contents.
The genre of Commedia all\'italiana differs markedly from the light and disengaged comedy from the so-called \"pink neorealism\" trend, in vogue until all of the 1950s, since, starting from the lesson of neorealism, is based on a more frank adherence in writing to reality; therefore, alongside the comic situations and plots typical of traditional comedy, always combines, with irony, a biting and sometimes bitter satire of manners, which reflects the evolution of Italian society in those years.
The success of films belonging to the \"Commedia all\'italiana\" genre is due both to the presence of an entire generation of great actors, who knew how to masterfully embody the vices and virtues, and the attempts at emancipation but also the vulgarities of the Italians of the time, both to the careful work of directors, storytellers and screenwriters, who invented a real genre, with essentially new connotations, managing to find precious material for their cinematographic creations in the folds of a rapid evolution with many contradictions.
Among the actors the main representatives are Alberto Sordi, Ugo Tognazzi, Vittorio Gassman, Marcello Mastroianni and Nino Manfredi, while among the actresses is Monica Vitti. Among directors and films, in 1961 Dino Risi directed *Una vita difficile* (*A Difficult Life*), then *Il Sorpasso* (*The Easy Life*), now a cult-movie, followed by: *I Mostri* (*The Monsters*, also known as *15 From Rome*), *In nome del popolo italiano* (*In the Name of the Italian People*) and *Profumo di donna* (*Scent of a Woman*). Monicelli\'s works include *La grande guerra* (*The Great War*), *I compagni* (*The Organizer*), *L\'armata Brancaleone*, *Vogliamo i colonnelli* (*We Want the Colonels*), *Romanzo popolare* (*Come Home and Meet My Wife*) and the *Amici miei* (*My Friends*) series.
For the majority of critics the true and proper \"Commedia all\'italiana\" is to be considered definitively waned since the beginning of the 1980s, giving way, at most, to an \"Commedia italiana\" (\"Italian comedy\").
#### Totò (1950s--1960s) {#totò_1950s1960s}
At this time, on the more commercial side of production, the phenomenon of Totò, a Neapolitan actor who is acclaimed as the major Italian comic, exploded. His films (often with Aldo Fabrizi, Peppino De Filippo and almost always with Mario Castellani) expressed a sort of neorealistic satire, in the means of a *guitto* (a \"hammy\" actor) as well as with the art of the great dramatic actor he also was. Totò is one of the symbols of the cinema of Naples.
A \"film-machine\" who produced dozens of titles per year, his repertoire was frequently repeated. His personal story (a prince born in the poorest *rione* (section of the city) of Naples), his unique twisted face, his special mimic expressions and his gestures created an inimitable personage and made him one of the most beloved Italians of the 1960s.
Some of his best-known films are *Fear and Sand* by Mario Mattoli, *Toto Tours Italy* by Mario Mattoli, *Toto the Sheik* by Mario Mattoli, *Cops and Robbers* by Mario Monicelli, *Toto and the Women* by Mario Monicelli, *Totò Tarzan* by Mario Mattoli, *Toto the Third Man* by Mario Mattoli, *Toto and the King of Rome* by Mario Monicelli and Steno, *Toto in Color* by Steno (one of the first Italian colour movies, 1952, in Ferrania colour), *Big Deal on Madonna Street* by Mario Monicelli, *Toto, Peppino, and the Hussy* by Camillo Mastrocinque and *The Law Is the Law* by Christian-Jaque. Pier Paolo Pasolini\'s *The Hawks and the Sparrows* and the episode \"Che cosa sono le nuvole\" from *Caprice Italian Style* (the latter released after his death), showed his dramatic skills.
#### Don Camillo and Peppone (1950s--1980s) {#don_camillo_and_peppone_1950s1980s}
A series of black-and-white films based on Don Camillo and Peppone characters created by the Italian writer and journalist Giovannino Guareschi were made between 1952 and 1965. These were French-Italian coproductions, and starred Fernandel as the Italian priest Don Camillo and Gino Cervi as Giuseppe \'Peppone\' Bottazzi, the Communist Mayor of their rural town. The titles are: *The Little World of Don Camillo* (1952), *The Return of Don Camillo* (1953), *Don Camillo\'s Last Round* (1955), *Don Camillo: Monsignor* (1961), and *Don Camillo in Moscow* (1965).
The movies were a huge commercial success in their native countries. In 1952, *Little World of Don Camillo* became the highest-grossing film in both Italy and France, while *The Return of Don Camillo* was the second most popular film of 1953 at the Italian and French box office.
Mario Camerini began filming the film *Don Camillo e i giovani d\'oggi*, but had to stop filming due to Fernandel\'s falling ill, which resulted in his untimely death. The film was then realized in 1972 with Gastone Moschin playing the role of Don Camillo and Lionel Stander as Peppone.
A new Don Camillo film, titled *The World of Don Camillo*, was also remade in 1983, an Italian production with Terence Hill directing and also starring as Don Camillo. Colin Blakely performed Peppone in one of his last film roles.
#### Hollywood on the Tiber (1950s--1960s) {#hollywood_on_the_tiber_1950s1960s}
Hollywood on the Tiber is a phrase used to describe the period in the 1950s and 1960s when the Italian capital of Rome emerged as a major location for international filmmaking attracting many foreign productions to the Cinecittà studios, the largest film studio in Europe. By contrast to the native Italian film industry, these movies were made in English for global release. Although the primary markets for such films were American and British audiences, they enjoyed widespread popularity in other countries, including Italy.
In the late 1940s, Hollywood studios began to shift production abroad to Europe. Italy was, along with Britain, one of the major destinations for American film companies. Large-budget films shot at Cinecittà during the \"Hollywood on the Tiber\" era such as *Quo Vadis* (1951), *Roman Holiday* (1953), *Ben-Hur* (1959), and *Cleopatra* (1963) were made in English with international casts and sometimes, but not always, Italian settings or themes.
The heyday of what was dubbed \'\"Hollywood on the Tiber\" was between 1950 and 1970, during which time many of the most famous names in world cinema made films in Italy. The phrase \"Hollywood on Tiber\", a reference to the river that runs through Rome, was coined in 1950 by *Time* magazine during the making of *Quo Vadis*.
<File:Quo> Vadis (1951) trailer 8.jpg\|*Quo Vadis* by Mervyn LeRoy (1951) <File:Audrey> Hepburn and Gregory Peck on Vespa in Roman Holiday trailer.jpg\|Gregory Peck and Audrey Hepburn in *Roman Holiday* by William Wyler (1953) <File:Taylor> and Burton Cleopatra.jpg\|Richard Burton and Elizabeth Taylor in *Cleopatra* by Joseph L. Mankiewicz (1963)
| 1,271 |
Cinema of Italy
| 11 |
10,787 |
# Cinema of Italy
## History
### 1950s {#s_6}
#### Sword-and-sandal (a.k.a. Peplum) (1950s--1960s) {#sword_and_sandal_a.k.a._peplum_1950s1960s}
Sword-and-sandal, also known as *peplum* (*pepla* plural), is a subgenre of largely Italian-made historical, mythological, or Biblical epics mostly set in the Greco-Roman antiquity or the Middle Ages. These films attempted to emulate the big-budget Hollywood historical epics of the time.
With the release of 1958\'s *Hercules*, starring American bodybuilder Steve Reeves, the Italian film industry gained entree to the American film market. These films were low-budget costume/adventure dramas, and had immediate appeal with both European and American audiences. Besides the many films starring a variety of muscle men as Hercules, heroes such as Samson and Italian fictional hero Maciste were common.
Sometimes dismissed as low-quality escapist fare, the sword-and-sandal allowed newer directors such as Sergio Leone and Mario Bava a means of breaking into the film industry. Some, such as Mario Bava\'s *Hercules in the Haunted World* (Italian: Ercole Al Centro Della Terra) are considered seminal works in their own right.
As the genre matured, budgets sometimes increased, as evidenced in 1962\'s *I sette gladiatori* (*The Seven Gladiators* in 1964 US release), a wide-screen epic with impressive sets and matte-painting work. Most sword-and-sandal films were in colour, whereas previous Italian efforts had often been black and white.
<File:Douglas> Mangano.jpg\|Kirk Douglas and Silvana Mangano in a pause during the shootings of *Ulysses* by Mario Camerini (1954) <File:Arrivano> i titani (film).JPG\| *My Son, the Hero* by Duccio Tessari (1962)
#### Musicarelli (1950s--1970s) {#musicarelli_1950s1970s}
Musicarello (pl. musicarelli) is a film subgenre which emerged in Italy and which is characterised by the presence in main roles of young singers, already famous among their peers, and their new record album. The genre began in the late 1950s, and had its peak of production in the 1960s.
The film which started the genre is considered to be *I ragazzi del Juke-Box* by Lucio Fulci (1959). The musicarelli were inspired by two American musicals, in particular *Jailhouse Rock* by Richard Thorpe (1957) and earlier *Love Me Tender* by Robert D. Webb (1956), both starring Elvis Presley.
At the heart of the musicarello is a hit song, or a song that the producers hoped would become a hit, that usually shares its title with the film itself and sometimes has lyrics depicting a part of the plot. In the films there are almost always tender and chaste love stories accompanied by the desire to have fun and dance without thoughts. Musicarelli reflect the desire and need for emancipation of young Italians, highlighting some generational frictions.
With the arrival of the 1968 student protests the genre started to decline, because the generational revolt became explicitly political and at the same time there was no longer music equally directed to the whole youth audience. For some time the duo Al Bano and Romina Power continued to enjoy success in musicarello films, but their films (like their songs) were a return to the traditional melody and to the musical films of the previous decades.
| 499 |
Cinema of Italy
| 12 |
10,787 |
# Cinema of Italy
## History
### 1960s {#s_7}
#### Spaghetti Western (1960s--1970s) {#spaghetti_western_1960s1970s}
On the heels of the sword-and-sandal craze, a related genre, the Spaghetti Western arose and was popular both in Italy and elsewhere. These films differed from traditional westerns by being filmed in Europe on limited budgets, but featured vivid cinematography. The term was used by foreign critics because most of these westerns were produced and directed by Italians.
The most popular Spaghetti Westerns were those of Sergio Leone, credited as the inventor of the genre, whose Dollars Trilogy (1964\'s *A Fistful of Dollars*, an unauthorized remake of the Japanese film *Yojimbo* by Akira Kurosawa; 1965\'s *For a Few Dollars More*, an original sequel; and 1966\'s *The Good, the Bad and the Ugly*, a World-famous prequel), featuring Clint Eastwood as a character marketed as \"the Man with No Name\" and notorious scores by Ennio Morricone, came to define the genre along with *Once Upon a Time in the West* (1968).
Another popular Spaghetti Western film is Sergio Corbucci *Django* (1966), starring Franco Nero as the titular character, another *Yojimbo* plagiarism, produced to capitalize on the success of *A Fistful of Dollars*. The original *Django* was followed by both an authorized sequel (1987\'s *Django Strikes Again*) and an overwhelming number of unauthorized uses of the same character in other films.
<File:Franco> Nero (Django).jpg\|Franco Nero as Django in the film of the same name by Sergio Corbucci (1966). <File:Il> pistolero dell Ave Maria - 1969 Mann.png\|*The Forgotten Pistolero* by Ferdinando Baldi (1969)
#### Bud Spencer and Terence Hill (1960s--1990s) {#bud_spencer_and_terence_hill_1960s1990s}
Also considered Spaghetti Westerns is a film genre which combined traditional western ambience with a Commedia all\'italiana-type comedy; films including *They Call Me Trinity* (1970) and *Trinity Is Still My Name* (1971), both by Enzo Barboni, which featured Bud Spencer and Terence Hill, the stage names of Carlo Pedersoli and Mario Girotti.
Terence Hill and Bud Spencer made numerous films together. Most of their early films were Spaghetti Westerns, beginning with *God Forgives\... I Don\'t!* (1967), the first part of a trilogy, followed by *Ace High* (1968) and *Boot Hill* (1969), but they also starred in comedies such as *\... All the Way, Boys!* (1972) and *Watch Out, We\'re Mad!* (1974).
The next films shot by the couple of actors, almost all comedies, were *Two Missionaries* (1974), *Crime Busters* (1977), *Odds and Evens* (1978), *I\'m for the Hippopotamus* (1979), *Who Finds a Friend Finds a Treasure* (1981), *Go for It* (1983), *Double Trouble* (1984), *Miami Supercops* (1985) and *Troublemakers* (1994).
#### Giallo (1960s--present) {#giallo_1960spresent}
During the 1960s and 1970s, Italian filmmakers Mario Bava, Riccardo Freda, Antonio Margheriti and Dario Argento developed *giallo* (plural *gialli*, from *giallo*, Italian for \"yellow\") horror films that become classics and influenced the genre in other countries. Representative films include: *The Girl Who Knew Too Much* (1963), *Castle of Blood* (1964), *The Bird with the Crystal Plumage* (1970), *Twitch of the Death Nerve* (1971), *Deep Red* (1975) and *Suspiria* (1977).
*Giallo* is a genre of mystery fiction and thrillers and often contains slasher, crime fiction, psychological thriller, psychological horror, sexploitation, and, less frequently, supernatural horror elements. *Giallo* developed in the mid-to-late 1960s, peaked in popularity during the 1970s, and subsequently declined in commercial mainstream filmmaking over the next few decades, though examples continue to be produced. It was a predecessor to, and had significant influence on, the later American slasher film genre.
*Giallo* usually blends the atmosphere and suspense of thriller fiction with elements of horror fiction (such as slasher violence) and eroticism (similar to the French *fantastique* genre), and often involves a mysterious killer whose identity is not revealed until the final act of the film. Most critics agree that the *giallo* represents a distinct category with unique features, but there is some disagreement on what exactly defines a *giallo* film.
*Giallo* films are generally characterized as gruesome murder-mystery thrillers that combine the suspense elements of detective fiction with scenes of shocking horror, featuring excessive bloodletting, stylish camerawork and often jarring musical arrangements. The archetypal *giallo* plot involves a mysterious, black-gloved psychopathic killer who stalks and butchers a series of beautiful women. While most *gialli* involve a human killer, some also feature a supernatural element.
The typical *giallo* protagonist is an outsider of some type, often a traveller, tourist, outcast, or even an alienated or disgraced private investigator, and frequently a young woman, often a young woman who is lonely or alone in a strange or foreign situation or environment (*gialli* rarely or less frequently feature law enforcement officers as chief protagonists).
The protagonists are generally or often unconnected to the murders before they begin and are drawn to help find the killer through their role as witnesses to one of the murders. The mystery is the identity of the killer, who is often revealed in the climax to be another key character, who conceals his or her identity with a disguise (usually some combination of hat, mask, sunglasses, gloves, and trench coat). Thus, the literary whodunit element of the *giallo* novels is retained, while being filtered through horror genre elements and Italy\'s long-standing tradition of opera and staged grand guignol drama. The structure of *giallo* films is also sometimes reminiscent of the so-called \"weird menace\" pulp magazine horror mystery genre alongside Edgar Allan Poe and Agatha Christie.
<File:Sei> donne per l\'assassino.png\|A scene from *Blood and Black Lace* by Mario Bava (1964) <File:Profondo> rosso (1975) Giuliana Calandra (2).png\|Giuliana Calandra in a famous scene from *Deep Red* by Dario Argento (1975)
#### Poliziotteschi (1960s--1970s) {#poliziotteschi_1960s1970s}
Poliziotteschi (plural of poliziottesco) films constitute a subgenre of crime and action films that emerged in Italy in the late 1960s and reached the height of their popularity in the 1970s. They are also known as *polizieschi all\'italiana*, Euro-crime, Italo-crime, spaghetti crime films\', or simply Italian crime films.
Influenced by both 1970s French crime films and gritty 1960s and 1970s American cop films and vigilante films, poliziotteschi films were made amidst an atmosphere of socio-political turmoil in Italy and increasing Italian crime rates.
The films generally featured graphic and brutal violence, organized crime, car chases, vigilantism, heists, gunfights, and corruption up to the highest levels. The protagonists were generally tough working-class loners, willing to act outside a corrupt or overly bureaucratic system. Notable international actors who acted in this genre of films include Alain Delon, Henry Silva, Fred Williamson, Charles Bronson, Tomas Milian and others.
| 1,065 |
Cinema of Italy
| 13 |
10,787 |
# Cinema of Italy
## History
### 1960s {#s_7}
#### Franco and Ciccio (1960s--1980s) {#franco_and_ciccio_1960s1980s}
Franco and Ciccio were a comedy duo formed by Italian actors Franco Franchi (1928--1992) and Ciccio Ingrassia (1922--2003), particularly popular in the 1960s and 1970s. Together, they appeared in 116 films, usually as the main characters, and occasionally as supporting characters in films featuring well-known actors such as Totò, Domenico Modugno, Vittorio Gassman, Buster Keaton and Vincent Price.
Their collaboration began in 1954 in the theatre field, and ended with Franchi\'s death in 1992. The two made their cinema debut in 1960 with the film *Appuntamento a Ischia*. After, seeing them in this film Modugno, who wanted them with him in his film, and remained active until 1984 when they shot their last film together, *Kaos*, although there were some interruptions in 1973, and from 1975 to 1980.
They acted in films certainly made in a short time and with few means, such as those shot with director Marcello Ciorciolini, sometimes even making a dozen films in a year, often without a real script and where they often improvised on the set. Also are the 13 films directed by Lucio Fulci, who was the architect of the reversal of their typical roles by making Ciccio the serious one, the sidekick, and Franco the comic one.
They also worked with important directors such as Pier Paolo Pasolini and the Taviani brothers. At the time, they were considered protagonists of B movie, they were subsequently reevaluated by critics for their comedy and creative abilities, becoming the subject of study. The huge success with the public is evidenced by the box office earnings, which in the 1960s, represented 10% of the annual earnings in Italy.
#### Social and political cinema (1960s--1970s) {#social_and_political_cinema_1960s1970s}
The auteur cinema of the 1960s continues its path by analyzing distinct themes and problems. A new authorial vision is emancipated from the surreal and existential veins of Fellini and Antonioni which sees cinema as an ideal means of denouncing corruption and malfeasance, both in the political system and in the industrial world. Thus was born the structure of the investigative film which, starting from the neorealist analysis of the facts, added to them a concise critical judgment, with the manifest intent of shaking the consciences of public opinion. This typology deliberately touches upon burning issues, often targeting the established power, with the intent of reconstructing a historical truth that is often hidden or denied.
The precursor of this way of understanding the director\'s profession was Francesco Rosi. In 1962 he inaugurated the investigation film project retracing, through a series of long flashbacks, the life of the homonym Sicilian criminal in the film *Salvatore Giuliano*. The following year he directed Rod Steiger in *Hands over the City* (1963), in which he courageously denounced the collusion existing between the various organs of the State and the building exploitation in Naples. The film was awarded the Golden Lion at the Venice Film Festival.
One of Francesco Rosi\'s most famous films of denunciation is *The Mattei Affair* (1972), a rigorous documentary into the mysterious disappearance of Enrico Mattei, manager of Eni, a large Italian state group. The film won the Palme d\'Or at the Cannes Film Festival. It became (together with the tight *Illustrious Corpses* (1976)) a true model for similar denunciation films produced both in Italy and abroad. Famous films of denunciation by Elio Petri are *The Working Class Goes to Heaven* (1971), a corrosive denunciation of life in the factory (winner of the Palme d\'Or at Cannes) and *Investigation of a Citizen Above Suspicion* (1970). The latter (accompanied by the incisive soundtrack by Ennio Morricone) is a dry psychoanalytic thriller centred on the aberrations of power, analyzed in a pathological key. The film obtained a wide consensus, winning the Academy Award for Best International Feature Film the following year.
Arguments related to civilian cinema can be found in the work of Damiano Damiani, who with *The Day of the Owl* (1968) enjoyed considerable success. Other feature films include, *Confessions of a Police Captain* (1971), *The Case Is Closed, Forget It* (1971), *How to Kill a Judge* (1974) and *I Am Afraid* (1977). Also Pasquale Squitieri for the film *Il prefetto di ferro* (1977) and Giuliano Montaldo, who after some experiences as an actor, staged some historical and political films such as *The Fifth Day of Peace* (1970), *Sacco & Vanzetti* (1971) and *Giordano Bruno* (1973). Also Nanni Loy for the film *In Prison Awaiting Trial* (1971) starring Alberto Sordi.
| 752 |
Cinema of Italy
| 14 |
10,787 |
# Cinema of Italy
## History
### 1970s {#s_8}
In the 1970s the work done by the director Lina Wertmüller was influential, who together with the well-established actors Giancarlo Giannini and Mariangela Melato, gave life to successful films such as *The Seduction of Mimi* (1972), *Love and Anarchy* (1973) and *Swept Away* (1974). Two years later, with *Seven Beauties* (1976), she obtained four nominations for the Academy Awards, making her the first woman ever to receive a nomination for best director.
The last protagonist of the great season of the comedy is the director Ettore Scola. Throughout the 1950s, he played the role of screenwriter, and then makes his directorial debut in 1964 with the film *Let\'s Talk About Women*. In 1974, he directed his best-known film, *We All Loved Each Other So Much*, which traces 30 years of Italian history through the stories of three friends: the lawyer Gianni Perego (Vittorio Gassman), the porter Antonio (Nino Manfredi) and the intellectual Nicola (Stefano Satta Flores). Other films include, *Down and Dirty* (1976) starring Nino Manfredi, and *A Special Day* (1977) starring Sophia Loren and Marcello Mastroianni.
#### Commedia sexy all\'italiana (1970s--1980s) {#commedia_sexy_allitaliana_1970s1980s}
Commedia sexy all\'italiana is characterized typically by both abundant female nudity and comedy, and by the minimal weight given to social criticism that was the basic ingredient of the main commedia all\'italiana genre. Stories are often set in affluent environments such as wealthy households. It is closely connected to the sexual revolution, which was extremely new and innovative for that period. For the first time, films with female nudity could be watched at the cinema. Pornography and scenes of explicit sex were still forbidden in Italian cinemas, but partial nudity was somewhat tolerated. The genre has been described as a cross between bawdy comedy and humorous erotic film with ample slapstick elements which follow more or less clichéd storylines.
During this time, commedia sexy all\'italiana films, described by the film critics of the time as not artistic or \"trash films\", were very popular in Italy. Today they are widely re-evaluated and have become real cult movies. They also allowed the producers of Italian cinema to have enough revenue to produce successful artistic films. These comedy films were of little artistic value and reached their popularity by confronting Italian social taboos, most notably in the sexual sphere. Actors such as Lando Buzzanca, Lino Banfi, Renzo Montagnani, Alvaro Vitali, Gloria Guida, Barbara Bouchet and Edwige Fenech owe much of their popularity to these films.
#### Fantozzi (1970s--1990s) {#fantozzi_1970s1990s}
The films starring Ugo Fantozzi, a character invented by Paolo Villaggio for his television sketches and newspaper short stories, also fell within the comic satirical comedy genre. Although Villaggio\'s movies tend to bridge comedy with a more elevated social satire, this character had a great impact on Italian society, to such a degree that the adjective *fantozziano* entered the lexicon. Ugo Fantozzi represents the archetype of the average Italian of the 1970s, middle-class with a simple lifestyle with the anxieties common to an entire class of workers, being re-evaluated by critics.
Of the many films telling of Fantozzi\'s misadventures, the most notable and famous were *Fantozzi* (1975) and *Il secondo tragico Fantozzi* (1976), both directed by Luciano Salce, but many others were produced. The other films were *Fantozzi contro tutti* (1980) directed by Neri Parenti, *Fantozzi subisce ancora* (1983) by Neri Parenti, *Superfantozzi* (1986) by Neri Parenti, *Fantozzi va in pensione* (1988) by Neri Parenti, *Fantozzi alla riscossa* (1990) by Neri Parenti, *Fantozzi in paradiso* (1993) by Neri Parenti, *Fantozzi - Il ritorno* (1996) by Neri Parenti and *Fantozzi 2000 - La clonazione* (1999) by Domenico Saverni.
#### Sceneggiata (1970s--1990s) {#sceneggiata_1970s1990s}
The sceneggiata (pl. sceneggiate) or sceneggiata napoletana is a form of musical drama typical of Naples. Beginning as a form of musical theatre after World War I, it was also adapted for cinema; sceneggiata films became especially popular in the 1970s, and contributed to the genre becoming more widely known outside Naples. The most famous actors who played dramas were Mario Merola, Mario Trevi, and Nino D\'Angelo.
The sceneggiata can be roughly described as a \"musical soap opera\", where action and dialogue are interspersed with Neapolitan songs. Plots revolve around melodramatic themes drawing from the Neapolitan culture and tradition, including passion, jealousy, betrayal, personal deceit and treachery, honour, vengeance, and life in the world of petty crime. Songs and dialogue were originally in Neapolitan dialect, although, especially in film production, Italian has sometimes been preferred, to reach a larger audience.
*Sgarro alla camorra* (i.e. \"Offence to the Camorra\", 1973), written and directed by Ettore Maria Fizzarotti and starring Mario Merola at his film debut, is regarded as the first sceneggiata film and as a prototype for the genre. It was shot in Cetara, Province of Salerno. Outside Italy, sceneggiata is mostly known in areas populated by Italian immigrants. Besides Naples, the second homeland of sceneggiata is probably Little Italy in New York City.
| 822 |
Cinema of Italy
| 15 |
10,787 |
# Cinema of Italy
## History
### 1980s {#s_9}
The 1980s was a period of decline for Italian filmmaking. In 1985, only 80 films were produced (the least since the postwar period) and the total number of audience decreased from 525 million in 1970 to 123 million. It is a physiological process that invests, in the same period as other countries, with a great cinematographic tradition such as Japan, United Kingdom and France. The era of producers ended; Carlo Ponti and Dino De Laurentiis work abroad, Goffredo Lombardo and Franco Cristaldi were no longer key figures. The crisis affects the Italian genre cinema above all, which, by virtue of the success of commercial television, is deprived of the vast majority of its audience. As a result, cinemas began showing mainly Hollywood films, which steadily took over, while many other cinemas closed.
Among the major artistic films of this era were *La città delle donne*, *E la nave va*, *Ginger and Fred* by Fellini, *L\'albero degli zoccoli* by Ermanno Olmi (winner of the Palme d\'Or at the Cannes Film Festival), *La notte di San Lorenzo* by Paolo and Vittorio Taviani, Antonioni\'s *Identificazione di una donna*, and *Bianca* and *La messa è finita* by Nanni Moretti. Although not entirely Italian, Bernardo Bertolucci\'s *The Last Emperor*, winner of 9 Oscars including Best Picture and Best Director, and *Once Upon a Time in America* of Sergio Leone came out of this period also.
*Non ci resta che piangere*, directed by and starring both Roberto Benigni and Massimo Troisi, is a cult movie in Italy.
Carlo Verdone, actor, screenwriter and film director, is best known for his comedic roles in Italian classics, which he also wrote and directed. His career was jumpstarted by his first three successes, *Un sacco bello* (1980), *Bianco, rosso e Verdone* (1981) and *Borotalco* (1982). Since the 1990s, he has been introducing more serious subjects in his work, linked to the excesses of society and the individual\'s hardships in confronting it; some examples are *Maledetto il giorno che t\'ho incontrata* (1992), *Il mio miglior nemico* (2006) and *Io, loro e Lara* (2010).
Francesco Nuti began his professional career as an actor in the late 1970s, when he formed the cabaret group *Giancattivi* together with Alessandro Benvenuti and Athina Cenci. The group took part in the TV shows *Black Out* and *Non Stop* for RAI TV, and shot their first feature film, *West of Paperino* (1981), written and directed by Benvenuti. The following year Nuti abandoned the trio and began a solo career with three movies directed by Maurizio Ponzi: *What a Ghostly Silence There Is Tonight* (1982), *The Pool Hustlers* (1982) and *Son contento* (1983). Starting in 1985, he began to direct his movies, scoring an immediate success with the films *Casablanca, Casablanca* and *All the Fault of Paradise* (1985), *Stregati* (1987), *Caruso Pascoski, Son of a Pole* (1988), *Willy Signori e vengo da lontano* (1990) and *Women in Skirts* (1991). The 1990s were however a period of decline for the Tuscan director, with poorly successful movies such as *OcchioPinocchio* (1994), *Mr. Fifteen Balls* (1998), *Io amo Andrea* (2000) and *Caruso, Zero for Conduct* (2001).
The cinepanettoni (singular: *cinepanettone*) are a series of farcical comedy films, one or two of which are scheduled for release annually in Italy during the Christmas period. The films were originally produced by Aurelio De Laurentiis\' Filmauro studio. These films are usually focused on the holidays of stereotypical Italians: bungling, wealthy and presumptuous members of the middle class who visit famous, glamorous or exotic places.
| 589 |
Cinema of Italy
| 16 |
10,787 |
# Cinema of Italy
## History
### 1990s {#s_10}
The economic crisis that emerged in the 1980s began to ease over the next decade. Nonetheless, the 1992--93 and 1993--94 seasons marked an all-time low in the number of films made, in the national market share (15 per cent), in the total number of viewers (under 90 million per year) and in the number of cinemas. The effect of this industrial contraction sanctions the total disappearance of Italian genre cinema in the middle of the decade, as it was no longer suitable to compete with the contemporary big Hollywood blockbusters (mainly due to the enormous budget differences available), with its directors and actors who therefore almost entirely switch to television film.
A new generation of directors has helped return Italian cinema to a healthy level since the end of the 1980s. Probably the most noted film of the period is *Nuovo Cinema Paradiso*, for which Giuseppe Tornatore won a 1989 Oscar (awarded in 1990) for Best Foreign Language Film. This award was followed when Gabriele Salvatores\'s *Mediterraneo* won the same prize in 1991.
*Il Postino: The Postman* (1994), directed by the British Michael Radford and starring Massimo Troisi, received five nominations at the Academy Awards, including Best Picture and Best Actor for Troisi, and won for Best Original Score. Another exploit was in 1998 when Roberto Benigni won three Oscars for his movie *Life Is Beautiful* (*La vita è bella)* (Best Actor for Benigni himself, Best Foreign Film, Best Music). The film was also nominated for Best Picture.
Leonardo Pieraccioni made his directorial debut with *The Graduates* (1995). In 1996 he directed his breakthrough film *The Cyclone*, which grossed Lire 75 billion at the box office.
### 2000s {#s_11}
With the new millennium, the Italian film industry regained stability and critical recognition. In 1995, 93 films were produced, while in 2005, 274 films were made. In 2006, the national market share reached 31 per cent. In 2001, Nanni Moretti\'s film *The Son\'s Room* (*La stanza del figlio*) received the Palme d\'Or at the Cannes Film Festival. Other noteworthy recent Italian films include: *Jona che visse nella balena* directed by Roberto Faenza, *Il grande cocomero* by Francesca Archibugi, *The Profession of Arms* (*Il mestiere delle armi*) by Olmi, *L\'ora di religione* by Marco Bellocchio, *Il ladro di bambini*, *Lamerica*, *The Keys to the House* (*Le chiavi di casa*) by Gianni Amelio, *I\'m Not Scared* (*Io non-ho paura*) by Gabriele Salvatores, *Le Fate Ignoranti*, *Facing Windows* (*La finestra di fronte*) by Ferzan Özpetek, *Good Morning, Night* (*Buongiorno, notte*) by Marco Bellocchio, *The Best of Youth* (*La meglio gioventù*) by Marco Tullio Giordana, *The Beast in the Heart* (*La bestia nel cuore*) by Cristina Comencini. In 2008 Paolo Sorrentino\'s *Il Divo*, a biographical film based on the life of Giulio Andreotti, won the Jury prize and *Gomorra*, a crime drama film, directed by Matteo Garrone won the Gran Prix at the Cannes Film Festival.
| 490 |
Cinema of Italy
| 17 |
10,787 |
# Cinema of Italy
## History
### 2010s {#s_12}
Paolo Sorrentino\'s *The Great Beauty* (*La Grande Bellezza*) won the 2014 Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film.
The two highest-grossing Italian films in Italy have both been directed by Gennaro Nunziante and starred Checco Zalone: *Sole a catinelle* (2013) with €51.8 million, and *Quo Vado?* (2016) with €65.3 million.
*They Call Me Jeeg*, a 2016 critically acclaimed superhero film directed by Gabriele Mainetti and starring Claudio Santamaria, won many awards, such as eight David di Donatello, two Nastro d\'Argento, and a Globo d\'oro.
Gianfranco Rosi\'s documentary film *Fire at Sea* (2016) won the Golden Bear at the 66th Berlin International Film Festival. *They Call Me Jeeg* and *Fire at Sea* were also selected as the Italian entry for the Best Foreign Language Film at the 89th Academy Awards, but they were not nominated.
Other successful 2010s Italian films include: *Vincere* and *The Traitor* by Marco Bellocchio, *The First Beautiful Thing* (*La prima cosa bella*), *Human Capital* (*Il capitale umano*) and *Like Crazy* (*La pazza gioia*) by Paolo Virzì, *We Have a Pope* (*Habemus Papam*) and *Mia Madre* by Nanni Moretti, *Caesar Must Die* (*Cesare deve morire*) by Paolo and Vittorio Taviani, *Don\'t Be Bad* (*Non essere cattivo*) by Claudio Caligari, *Romanzo Criminale* by Michele Placido (that spawned a TV series, *Romanzo criminale - La serie*), *Youth* (*La giovinezza*) by Paolo Sorrentino, *Suburra* by Stefano Sollima, *Perfect Strangers* (*Perfetti sconosciuti*) by Paolo Genovese, *Mediterranea* and *A Ciambra* by Jonas Carpignano, *Italian Race* (*Veloce come il vento*) and *The First King: Birth of an Empire* (*Il primo re*) by Matteo Rovere, and *Tale of Tales* (*Il racconto dei racconti*), *Dogman* and *Pinocchio* by Matteo Garrone.
*Call Me by Your Name* (2017), the final installment in Luca Guadagnino\'s thematic *Desire* trilogy, following *I Am Love* (2009) and *A Bigger Splash* (2015), received widespread acclaim and numerous accolades, including the Academy Award for Best Adapted Screenplay and the nomination for Best Picture in 2018.
*Perfect Strangers* by Paolo Genovese was included in the *Guinness World Records* as it became the most remade film in cinema history, with a total of 18 versions of the film.
### 2020s {#s_13}
Successful 2020s Italian films include: *The Life Ahead* by Edoardo Ponti, *Hidden Away* by Giorgio Diritti, *Bad Tales* by Damiano and Fabio D\'Innocenzo, *The Predators* by Pietro Castellitto, *Padrenostro* by Claudio Noce, *Notturno* by Gianfranco Rosi, *The King of Laughter* by Mario Martone, *A Chiara* by Jonas Carpignano, *Freaks Out* by Gabriele Mainetti, *The Hand of God* by Paolo Sorrentino, *Nostalgia* by Mario Martone, *Dry* by Paolo Giordano, *The Hanging Sun* by Francesco Carrozzini, *Bones and All* by Luca Guadagnino, *L\'immensità* by Emanuele Crialese and *Robbing Mussolini* by Renato De Maria.
| 455 |
Cinema of Italy
| 18 |
10,787 |
# Cinema of Italy
## 100 Italian films to be saved {#italian_films_to_be_saved}
The list of the 100 Italian films to be saved (*100 film italiani da salvare*) was created with the aim to report \"100 films that have changed the collective memory of the country between 1942 and 1978\". The project was established in 2008 by the Venice Days festival section of the 65th Venice International Film Festival, in collaboration with Cinecittà Holding and with the support of the Ministry of Cultural Heritage.
The list was edited by Fabio Ferzetti, film critic of the newspaper *Il Messaggero*, in collaboration with film director Gianni Amelio and the writers and film critics Gian Piero Brunetta, Giovanni De Luna, Gianluca Farinelli, Giovanna Grignaffini, Paolo Mereghetti, Morando Morandini, Domenico Starnone and Sergio Toffetti.
## Cinematheques
Cineteca Nazionale is a film archive located in Rome. Founded in 1949, here are 80,000 films on file, 600,000 photographs, 50,000 posters and the collection of the Italian Association for the History of Cinema Research (AIRSC). It arose from the archival heritage of the Centro Sperimentale di Cinematografia, which in 1943, had been removed by the Nazi occupiers, losing unique materials. Cineteca Italiana is a private film archive located in Milan. Established in 1947, and as a foundation in 1996, the Cineteca Italiana houses over 20,000 films and more than 100,000 photographs from the history of Italian and international cinema. Cineteca di Bologna is a film archive in Bologna. It was founded in 1962.
## Museums
The National Museum of Cinema (Italian: *Museo Nazionale del Cinema*) located in Turin is a motion picture museum inside the Mole Antonelliana tower. It is operated by the *Maria Adriana Prolo Foundation*, and the core of its collection is the result of the work of the historian and collector Maria Adriana Prolo. It was housed in the *Palazzo Chiablese*. In 2008, with 532,196 visitors, it ranked 13th among the most visited Italian museums. The museum houses pre-cinematographic optical devices such as magic lanterns, earlier and current film technologies, stage items from early Italian movies and other memorabilia. Along the exhibition path of about 35,000 square feet (3,200 m^2^) on five levels, it is possible to visit some areas devoted to the different kinds of film crew, and in the main hall, fitted in the temple hall of the Mole (which was a building originally intended as a synagogue), a series of chapels representing several film genres.
The Museum of Precinema (Italian: *Museo del Precinema*) is a museum in the Palazzo Angeli, Prato della Valle, Padua, related to the history of precinema, or precursors of film. It was created in 1998 to display the Minici Zotti Collection, in collaboration with the Comune of Padova. It also produces interactive touring exhibitions and makes valuable loans to other prestigious exhibitions such as *Lanterne magique et film peint* at the Cinémathèque Française in Paris and the National Museum of Cinema in Turin.
The Cinema Museum of Rome is located in Cinecittà. The collections consist of movie posters and playbills, cine cameras, projectors, magic lanterns, stage costumes and the patent of Filoteo Alberini\'s \"kinetograph\". The Milan Cinema Museum, managed by the Cineteca Italiana, is divided into three sections, the precinema, animation cinema and \"Milan as a film set\", as well as multimedia and interactive stations.
The Catania Cinema Museum exhibits documents concerning cinema, its techniques and its history, with particular attention to the link between cinema and Sicily. The Cinema Museum of Syracuse collects more than 10,000 exhibits on display in 12 rooms.
| 585 |
Cinema of Italy
| 19 |
10,787 |
# Cinema of Italy
## Italian Academy Award winners {#italian_academy_award_winners}
Italy is the most awarded country at the Academy Awards for Best Foreign Language Film, with 14 wins, 3 Special Awards and 31 nominations. Winners with the year of the ceremony:
- *Shoeshine* (1947), by Vittorio De Sica (Honorary Award)
- *Bicycle Thieves* (1949), by Vittorio De Sica (Honorary Award)
- *The Walls of Malapaga* (1950), by René Clément (Honorary Award)
- *La Strada* (1956), by Federico Fellini
- *Nights of Cabiria* (1957), by Federico Fellini
- *8½* (1963), by Federico Fellini
- *Yesterday, Today and Tomorrow* (1964), by Vittorio De Sica
- *Investigation of a Citizen Above Suspicion* (1970), by Elio Petri
- *The Garden of the Finzi-Continis* (1971), by Vittorio De Sica
- *Amarcord* (1973), by Federico Fellini
- *Cinema Paradiso* (1989), by Giuseppe Tornatore
- *Mediterraneo* (1992), by Gabriele Salvatores
- *Life Is Beautiful* (1998), by Roberto Benigni
- *The Great Beauty* (2013), by Paolo Sorrentino
In 1961, Sophia Loren won the Academy Award for Best Actress for her role as a woman who is raped during World War II, along with her adolescent daughter, in Vittorio De Sica\'s *Two Women*. She was the first actress to win an Academy Award for a performance in any foreign language, and the second Italian leading lady Oscar-winner, after Anna Magnani for *The Rose Tattoo*. In 1998, Roberto Benigni was the first Italian actor to win the Best Actor for *Life Is Beautiful*.
Italian-born filmmaker Frank Capra won three times at the Academy Award for Best Director, for *It Happened One Night*, *Mr. Deeds Goes to Town* and *You Can\'t Take It with You*. Bernardo Bertolucci won the award for *The Last Emperor*, and also Best Adapted Screenplay for the same movie.
Ennio De Concini, Alfredo Giannetti and Pietro Germi won the award for Best Original Screenplay for *Divorce Italian Style*. The Academy Award for Best Film Editing was won by Gabriella Cristiani for *The Last Emperor* and by Pietro Scalia for *JFK* and *Black Hawk Down*.
The award for Best Original Score was won by Nino Rota for *The Godfather Part II*; Giorgio Moroder for *Midnight Express*; Nicola Piovani for *Life is Beautiful*; Dario Marianelli for *Atonement*; and Ennio Morricone for *The Hateful Eight*. Giorgio Moroder also won the award for Best Original Song for *Flashdance* and *Top Gun*.
The Italian winners at the Academy Award for Best Production Design are Dario Simoni for *Lawrence of Arabia* and *Doctor Zhivago*; Elio Altramura and Gianni Quaranta for *A Room with a View*; Bruno Cesari, Osvaldo Desideri and Ferdinando Scarfiotti for *The Last Emperor*; Luciana Arrighi for *Howards End*; and Dante Ferretti and Francesca Lo Schiavo for *The Aviator*, *Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street* and *Hugo*.
The winners at the Academy Award for Best Cinematography are: Tony Gaudio for *Anthony Adverse*; Pasqualino De Santis for *Romeo and Juliet*; Vittorio Storaro for *Apocalypse Now*, *Reds* and *The Last Emperor*; and Mauro Fiore for *Avatar*.
The winners at the Academy Award for Best Costume Design are Piero Gherardi for *La dolce vita* and *8½*; Vittorio Nino Novarese for *Cleopatra* and *Cromwell*; Danilo Donati for *The Taming of the Shrew*, *Romeo and Juliet*, and *Fellini\'s Casanova*; Franca Squarciapino for *Cyrano de Bergerac*; Gabriella Pescucci for *The Age of Innocence*; and Milena Canonero for *Barry Lyndon*, *Chariots of Fire*, *Marie Antoinette* and *The Grand Budapest Hotel*.
Special effects artist Carlo Rambaldi won three Oscars: one Special Achievement Academy Award for Best Visual Effects for *King Kong* and two Academy Awards for Best Visual Effects for *Alien* (1979) and *E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial*. The Academy Award for Best Makeup and Hairstyling was won by Manlio Rocchetti for *Driving Miss Daisy*, and Alessandro Bertolazzi and Giorgio Gregorini for *Suicide Squad*.
Sophia Loren, Federico Fellini, Michelangelo Antonioni, Dino De Laurentiis, Ennio Morricone, and Piero Tosi also received the Academy Honorary Award
| 645 |
Cinema of Italy
| 20 |
10,790 |
# Cinema of Japan
The `{{Nihongo|'''cinema of Japan'''|日本映画|Nihon eiga}}`{=mediawiki}, also known domestically as `{{Nihongo|'''''hōga'''''|邦画|extra="domestic cinema"}}`{=mediawiki}, has a history that spans more than 100 years. Japan has one of the oldest and largest film industries in the world; as of 2022, it was the fourth largest by number of feature films produced, producing 634 films, and third largest in terms of box office revenue, standing at \$1.5 billion. Films have been produced in Japan since 1897.
During the 1950s, a period dubbed the \"Golden Age of Japanese cinema\", the *jidaigeki* films of Akira Kurosawa as well as the science fiction films of Ishirō Honda and Eiji Tsuburaya gained Japanese cinema international praise and made these directors universally renown and highly influential. Some of the Japanese films of this period are now rated some of the greatest of all time: *Tokyo Story* (1953) ranked number three in *Sight & Sound* critics\' list of the 100 greatest films of all time and also topped the 2012 *Sight & Sound* directors\' poll of The Top 50 Greatest Films of All Time, dethroning *Citizen Kane*, while Akira Kurosawa\'s *Seven Samurai* (1954) was voted the greatest foreign-language film of all time in BBC\'s 2018 poll of 209 critics in 43 countries. Japan has also won the Academy Award for the Best International Feature Film`{{refn|group=nb|Previously, the category was called Best Foreign Language Film before being updated to Best International Feature Film in April 2019.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.oscars.org/news/academy-announces-rules-92nd-oscars |title=Academy announces rules for 92nd Oscars |work=Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences |date=April 23, 2019 |access-date=14 February 2021}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.forbes.com/sites/jeffewing/2019/04/24/academy-announces-rule-changes-for-92nd-oscars/#7b9d85ac3d5b |title=Academy Announces Rule Changes For 92nd Oscars |work=Forbes |access-date=14 February 2021}}</ref>}}`{=mediawiki} five times,`{{refn|group=nb|''[[Rashomon]]'' (1951), ''[[Gate of Hell (film)|Gate of Hell]]'' (1954), ''[[Samurai I: Musashi Miyamoto]]'' (1955), ''[[Departures (2008 film)|Departures]]'' (2008), and ''[[Drive My Car (film)|Drive My Car]]'' (2021).}}`{=mediawiki} more than any other Asian country.
Japan\'s Big Four film studios are Toho, Toei, Shochiku and Kadokawa, which are the only members of the Motion Picture Producers Association of Japan (MPPAJ). The annual Japan Academy Film Prize hosted by the Nippon Academy-shō Association is considered to be the Japanese equivalent of the Academy Awards.
| 350 |
Cinema of Japan
| 0 |
10,790 |
# Cinema of Japan
## History
### Early silent era {#early_silent_era}
The kinetoscope, first shown commercially by Thomas Edison in the United States in 1894, was first shown in Japan in November 1896. The Vitascope and the Lumière Brothers\' Cinematograph were first presented in Japan in early 1897, by businessmen such as Inabata Katsutaro. Lumière cameramen were the first to shoot films in Japan. Moving pictures, however, were not an entirely new experience for the Japanese because of their rich tradition of pre-cinematic devices such as *gentō* (*utsushi-e*) or the magic lantern. The first successful Japanese film in late 1897 showed sights in Tokyo.
In 1898, some ghost films were made, such as the Shirō Asano shorts *Bake Jizo* (Jizo the Spook / 化け地蔵) and *Shinin no sosei* (Resurrection of a Corpse). The first documentary, the short *Geisha no teodori* (芸者の手踊り), was made in June 1899. Tsunekichi Shibata made a number of early films, including *Momijigari*, an 1899 record of two famous actors performing a scene from a well-known kabuki play. Early films were influenced by traditional theater -- for example, kabuki and bunraku.
### 20th century {#th_century}
At the dawn of the 20th century, theaters in Japan hired benshi, storytellers who sat next to the screen and narrated silent movies. They were descendants of kabuki jōruri, kōdan storytellers, theater barkers and other forms of oral storytelling. Benshi could be accompanied by music like silent films from cinema of the West. With the advent of sound in the early 1930s, the benshi gradually declined.
In 1908, Shōzō Makino, considered the pioneering director of Japanese film, began his influential career with *Honnōji gassen* (本能寺合戦), produced for Yokota Shōkai. Shōzō recruited Matsunosuke Onoe, a former kabuki actor, to star in his productions. Onoe became Japan\'s first film star, appearing in over 1,000 films, mostly shorts, between 1909 and 1926. The pair pioneered the *jidaigeki* genre. Tokihiko Okada was a popular romantic lead of the same era.
The first Japanese film production studio was built in 1909 by the Yoshizawa Shōten company in Tokyo.
The first female Japanese performer to appear in a film professionally was the dancer/actress Tokuko Nagai Takagi, who appeared in four shorts for the American-based Thanhouser Company between 1911 and 1914.
Among intellectuals, critiques of Japanese cinema grew in the 1910s and eventually developed into a movement that transformed Japanese film. Film criticism began with early film magazines such as *Katsudō shashinkai* (begun in 1909) and a full-length book written by Yasunosuke Gonda in 1914, but many early film critics often focused on chastising the work of studios like Nikkatsu and Tenkatsu for being too theatrical (using, for instance, elements from kabuki and shinpa such as onnagata) and for not utilizing what were considered more cinematic techniques to tell stories, instead relying on benshi. In what was later named the Pure Film Movement, writers in magazines such as *Kinema Record* called for a broader use of such cinematic techniques. Some of these critics, such as Norimasa Kaeriyama, went on to put their ideas into practice by directing such films as *The Glow of Life* (1918), which was one of the first films to use actresses (in this case, Harumi Hanayagi). There were parallel efforts elsewhere in the film industry. In his 1917 film *The Captain\'s Daughter* (based on the play by Choji Nakauchi, based in turn on the German film, *Gendarm Möbius*), Masao Inoue started using techniques new to the silent film era, such as the close-up and cut back. The Pure Film Movement was central in the development of the gendaigeki and scriptwriting.
New studios established around 1920, such as Shochiku and Taikatsu, aided the cause for reform. At Taikatsu, Thomas Kurihara directed films scripted by the novelist Junichiro Tanizaki, who was a strong advocate of film reform. Even Nikkatsu produced reformist films under the direction of Eizō Tanaka. By the mid-1920s, actresses had replaced onnagata and films used more of the devices pioneered by Inoue. Some of the most discussed silent films from Japan are those of Kenji Mizoguchi, whose later works (including *Ugetsu*/*Ugetsu Monogatari*) retain a very high reputation.
Japanese films gained popularity in the mid-1920s against foreign films, in part fueled by the popularity of movie stars and a new style of jidaigeki. Directors such as Daisuke Itō and Masahiro Makino made samurai films like *A Diary of Chuji\'s Travels* and *Roningai* featuring rebellious antiheroes in fast-cut fight scenes that were both critically acclaimed and commercial successes. Some stars, such as Tsumasaburo Bando, Kanjūrō Arashi, Chiezō Kataoka, Takako Irie and Utaemon Ichikawa, were inspired by Makino Film Productions and formed their own independent production companies where directors such as Hiroshi Inagaki, Mansaku Itami and Sadao Yamanaka honed their skills. Director Teinosuke Kinugasa created a production company to produce the experimental masterpiece *A Page of Madness*, starring Masao Inoue, in 1926. Many of these companies, while surviving during the silent era against major studios like Nikkatsu, Shochiku, Teikine, and Toa Studios, could not survive the cost involved in converting to sound.
With the rise of left-wing political movements and labor unions at the end of the 1920s, there arose so-called tendency films with left-leaning tendencies. Directors Kenji Mizoguchi, Daisuke Itō, Shigeyoshi Suzuki, and Tomu Uchida were prominent examples. In contrast to these commercially produced 35 mm films, the Marxist Proletarian Film League of Japan (Prokino) made works independently in smaller gauges (such as 9.5mm and 16mm), with more radical intentions. Tendency films suffered from severe censorship heading into the 1930s, and Prokino members were arrested and the movement effectively crushed. Such moves by the government had profound effects on the expression of political dissent in 1930s cinema. Films from this period include: *Sakanaya Honda, Jitsuroku Chushingura, Horaijima, Orochi, Maboroshi, Kurutta Ippeji, Jujiro, Kurama Tengu: Kyōfu Jidai*, and *Kurama Tengu*.
The 1923 earthquake, the bombing of Tokyo during World War II, and the natural effects of time and Japan\'s humidity on flammable and unstable nitrate film have resulted in a great dearth of surviving films from this period.^Ref?^
Unlike in the West, silent films were still being produced in Japan well into the 1930s; as late as 1938, a third of Japanese films were silent. For instance, Yasujirō Ozu\'s *An Inn in Tokyo* (1935), considered a precursor to the neorealism genre, was a silent film. A few Japanese sound shorts were made in the 1920s and 1930s, but Japan\'s first feature-length talkie was *Fujiwara Yoshie no furusato* (1930), which used the *Mina Talkie System*. Notable talkies of this period include Mikio Naruse\'s *Wife, Be Like A Rose!* (*Tsuma Yo Bara No Yoni*, 1935), which was one of the first Japanese films to gain a theatrical release in the U.S.; Kenji Mizoguchi\'s *Sisters of the Gion* (*Gion no shimai*, 1936); *Osaka Elegy* (1936); *The Story of the Last Chrysanthemums* (1939); and Sadao Yamanaka\'s *Humanity and Paper Balloons* (1937).
Film criticism shared this vitality, with many film journals such as *Kinema Junpo* and newspapers printing detailed discussions of the cinema of the day, both at home and abroad. A cultured \"impressionist\" criticism pursued by critics such as Tadashi Iijima, Fuyuhiko Kitagawa, and Matsuo Kishi was dominant, but opposed by leftist critics such as Akira Iwasaki and Genjū Sasa who sought an ideological critique of films.
| 1,206 |
Cinema of Japan
| 1 |
10,790 |
# Cinema of Japan
## History
### 20th century {#th_century}
The 1930s also saw increased government involvement in cinema, which was symbolized by the passing of the Film Law, which gave the state more authority over the film industry, in 1939. The government encouraged some forms of cinema, producing propaganda films and promoting documentary films (also called *bunka eiga* or \"culture films\"), with important documentaries being made by directors such as Fumio Kamei. Realism was in favor; film theorists such as Taihei Imamura and Heiichi Sugiyama advocated for documentary or realist drama, while directors such as Hiroshi Shimizu and Tomotaka Tasaka produced fiction films that were strongly realistic in style. Films reinforced the importance of traditional Japanese values against the rise of the Westernised modern girl, a character epitomised by Shizue Tatsuta in Ozu\'s 1930 film *Young Lady*.
#### Wartime movies {#wartime_movies}
Further information: War film
Because of World War II and the weak economy, unemployment became widespread in Japan, and the cinema industry suffered.
During this period, when Japan was expanding its empire, the Japanese government saw cinema as a propaganda tool to show the glory and invincibility of the Empire of Japan. Thus, many films from this period depict patriotic and militaristic themes. However unlike most wartime films the Japanese tended to tell it like it is, showing the hardships soldiers face everyday in battle, marching through mud and staying in small unknown towns. In 1942, Kajiro Yamamoto\'s film *The War at Sea from Hawaii to Malaya* portrayed the attack on Pearl Harbor; the film made use of special effects directed by Eiji Tsuburaya, including a miniature scale model of Pearl Harbor itself.
Kamishibai (紙芝居) or paper theater was a popular form of street entertainment, especially for the children. Kamishibai was often used to tell stories of Buddhist deities and the history of some Buddhist temples. In 1920 it started out as normal storytelling for the children, but in about 1932, it started to lean more to a militaristic viewpoint.
Yoshiko Yamaguchi was a very popular actress. She rose to international stardom with 22 wartime movies. The Manchukuo Film Association let her use the Chinese name Li Xianglan so she could represent Chinese roles in Japanese propaganda movies. After the war she used her official Japanese name and starred in an additional 29 movies. She was elected as a member of the Japanese parliament in the 1970s and served for 18 years.
Akira Kurosawa made his feature film debut with *Sugata Sanshiro* in 1943.
| 416 |
Cinema of Japan
| 2 |
10,790 |
# Cinema of Japan
## History
### 20th century {#th_century}
#### American occupation {#american_occupation}
After the surrender of Japan in 1945, wartime controls and restrictions on the Japanese film industry were abolished, and the Supreme Commander for the Allied Powers (SCAP) established the Civil Information and Education Section (CIE), which came to manage the industry. All film proposals and screenplays were to be processed and approved by CIE. The script would then be processed by the Civil Censorship Detachment (CCD), which was under the direct control of American military. Pre-war and wartime films were also subject to review, and over 500 were condemned, with half of them being burned. In addition, Toho and Daiei pre-emptively destroyed films they thought to be incriminating. In November 1945, CIE announced that it would forbid films deemed to be:
1. infused with militarism;
2. showing revenge as a legitimate motive;
3. nationalistic;
4. chauvinistic and anti-foreign;
5. distorting historical facts;
6. favoring racial or religious discrimination;
7. portraying feudal loyalty or contempt of life as desirable and honorable;
8. approving suicide either directly or indirectly;
9. dealing with or approving the subjugation or degradation of women;
10. depicting brutality, violence or evil as triumphant;
11. anti-democratic;
12. condoning the exploitation of children; or
13. at variance with the spirit or letter of the Potsdam Declaration or any SCAP directive
A major consequence of these restrictions was that the production of *jidaigeki* films, especially those involving samurai, became effectively impossible. A notable case of censorship was of the war film *Escape at Dawn,* written by Akira Kurosawa and Senkichi Taniguchi, which was re-written over a dozen times at the request of CIE, largely erasing the original content of the story. On the other hand, the CIE favored the production of films that reflected the policies of the Occupation, such as agricultural reform and the organization of labor unions, and promoted the peaceful redevelopment of Japan and the rights of individuals.
Significant movies among them are, Setsuko Hara appeared in Akira Kurosawa\'s *No Regrets for Our Youth* (1946), Kōzaburō Yoshimura\'s *A Ball at the Anjo House* (1947), Tadashi Imai\'s *Aoi sanmyaku* (1949), etc. It gained national popularity as a star symbolizing the beginning of a new era. In Yasushi Sasaki\'s *Hatachi no Seishun* (1946), the first kiss scene of a Japanese movie was filmed. The Mainichi Film Award was also created in 1946.
The first movie released after the war was *Soyokaze*, directed by Yasushi Sasaki, and the theme song *Ringo no Uta* was a big hit.
The first collaborations between Akira Kurosawa and actor Toshiro Mifune were *Drunken Angel* in 1948 and *Stray Dog* in 1949. Yasujirō Ozu directed the critically and commercially successful *Late Spring* in 1949.
In the later half of the Occupation, the Reverse Course came into effect. Left-wing filmmakers displaced from the major studios in the Red Purge joined those displaced after suppression of the Toho strikes, forming a new independent film movement. Directors such as Fumio Kamei, Tadashi Imai and Satsuo Yamamoto were members of the Japanese Communist Party. Independent social realist dramas saw a small and temporary boom amid the wave of sentimental war dramas produced after the end of Occupation.
| 532 |
Cinema of Japan
| 3 |
10,790 |
# Cinema of Japan
## History
### 20th century {#th_century}
#### Golden Age {#golden_age}
The 1950s are widely considered the Golden Age of Japanese cinema. Three Japanese films from this decade (*Rashomon*, *Seven Samurai* and *Tokyo Story*) appeared in the top ten of *Sight & Sound*{{\'}}s critics\' and directors\' polls for the best films of all time in 2002. They also appeared in the 2012 polls, with *Tokyo Story* (1953) dethroning *Citizen Kane* at the top of the 2012 directors\' poll.
War movies covering themes previously restricted by SCAP began to be produced, such as Hideo Sekigawa\'s *Listen to the Voices of the Sea* (1950), Tadashi Imai\'s *Himeyuri no Tô* (*Tower of the Lilies,* 1953), Keisuke Kinoshita\'s *Twenty-Four Eyes* (1954) and Kon Ichikawa\'s *The Burmese Harp* (1956). Works showcasing tragic and sentimental retrospectives of the war experience became a public phenomenon. Other films produced include *Battleship Yamato* (1953) and *Eagle of the Pacific* (1953). Under these circumstances, movies such as *Emperor Meiji and the Russo-Japanese War* (明治天皇と日露大戦争, 1957), where Kanjūrō Arashi played Emperor Meiji, also appeared. It was a situation that was unthinkable before the war, the commercialization of the Emperor who was supposed to be sacred and inviolable.
The period after the American Occupation led to a rise in diversity in movie distribution thanks to the increased output and popularity of the film studios of Toho, Daiei, Shochiku, Nikkatsu, and Toei. This period gave rise to the six great artists of Japanese cinema: Masaki Kobayashi, Akira Kurosawa, Ishirō Honda, Eiji Tsuburaya, Kenji Mizoguchi, and Yasujirō Ozu. Each director dealt with the effects the war and subsequent occupation by America in unique and innovative ways. During this decade, the works of Kurosawa, Honda, and Tsuburaya would become the first Japanese films to be widely distributed in foreign theaters.
The decade started with Akira Kurosawa\'s *Rashomon* (1950), which won the Golden Lion at the Venice Film Festival in 1951 and the Academy Honorary Award for Best Foreign Language Film in 1952, and marked the entrance of Japanese cinema onto the world stage. It was also the breakout role for legendary star Toshiro Mifune. In 1953, *Entotsu no mieru basho* by Heinosuke Gosho was in competition at the 3rd Berlin International Film Festival.
The first Japanese film in color was *Carmen Comes Home* directed by Keisuke Kinoshita and released in 1951. There was also a black-and-white version of this film available. *Tokyo File 212* (1951) was the first American feature film to be shot entirely in Japan. The lead roles were played by Florence Marly and Robert Peyton. It featured the geisha Ichimaru in a short cameo. Suzuki Ikuzo\'s Tonichi Enterprises Company co-produced the film. *Gate of Hell*, a 1953 film by Teinosuke Kinugasa, was the first movie that filmed using Eastmancolor film, *Gate of Hell* was both Daiei\'s first color film and the first Japanese color movie to be released outside Japan, receiving an Academy Honorary Award in 1954 for Best Costume Design by Sanzo Wada and an Honorary Award for Best Foreign Language Film. It also won the Palme d\'Or at the Cannes Film Festival, the first Japanese film to achieve that honour.
The year 1954 saw two of Japan\'s most influential films released. The first was the Kurosawa epic *Seven Samurai*, about a band of hired samurai who protect a helpless village from a rapacious gang of thieves. The same year, Kurosawa\'s friend and colleague Ishirō Honda directed the anti-nuclear monster-drama *Godzilla*, featuring award-winning effects by Eiji Tsuburaya. The latter film was first ever Japanese film to be given a wide release throughout the United States, where it was heavily re-edited, and featured new footage with actor Raymond Burr for its distribution in 1956 as *Godzilla, King of the Monsters!*. Although it was edited for its Western release, Godzilla became an international icon of Japan and spawned an entire subgenre of *kaiju* films, as well as the longest-running film franchise in history. Also in 1954, another Kurosawa film, *Ikiru* was in competition at the 4th Berlin International Film Festival.
In 1955, Hiroshi Inagaki won an Academy Honorary Award for Best Foreign Language Film for Part I of his *Samurai* trilogy and in 1958 won the Golden Lion at the Venice Film Festival for *Rickshaw Man*. Kon Ichikawa directed two anti-war dramas: *The Burmese Harp* (1956), which was nominated for Best Foreign Language Film at the Academy Awards, and *Fires on the Plain* (1959), along with *Enjo* (1958), which was adapted from Yukio Mishima\'s novel *Temple of The Golden Pavilion*. Masaki Kobayashi made three films which would collectively become known as *The Human Condition Trilogy*: *No Greater Love* (1959), and *The Road to Eternity* (1959). The trilogy was completed in 1961, with *A Soldier\'s Prayer*.
Kenji Mizoguchi, who died in 1956, ended his career with a series of masterpieces including *The Life of Oharu* (1952), *Ugetsu* (1953) and *Sansho the Bailiff* (1954). He won the Silver Lion at the Venice Film Festival for *Ugetsu*. Mizoguchi\'s films often deal with the tragedies inflicted on women by Japanese society. Mikio Naruse made *Repast* (1950), *Late Chrysanthemums* (1954), *Sound of the Mountain* (1954) and *Floating Clouds* (1955). Yasujirō Ozu began directing color films beginning with *Equinox Flower* (1958), and later *Good Morning* (1959) and *Floating Weeds* (1958), which was adapted from his earlier silent *A Story of Floating Weeds* (1934), and was shot by *Rashomon* and *Sansho the Bailiff* cinematographer Kazuo Miyagawa.
The Blue Ribbon Awards were established in 1950. The first winner for Best Film was *Until We Meet Again* by Tadashi Imai.
The number of films produced, and the cinema audience reached a peak in the 1960s. Most films were shown in double bills, with one half of the bill being a \"program picture\" or B movie. A typical program picture was shot in four weeks. The demand for these program pictures in quantity meant the growth of film series such as *The Hoodlum Soldier* or *Akumyo*.
The huge level of activity of 1960s Japanese cinema also resulted in many classics. Akira Kurosawa directed the 1961 classic *Yojimbo*. Yasujirō Ozu made his final film, *An Autumn Afternoon*, in 1962. Mikio Naruse directed the wide screen melodrama *When a Woman Ascends the Stairs* in 1960; his final film was 1967\'s *Scattered Clouds*.
Kon Ichikawa captured the watershed 1964 Olympics in his three-hour documentary *Tokyo Olympiad* (1965). Seijun Suzuki was fired by Nikkatsu for \"making films that don\'t make any sense and don\'t make any money\" after his surrealist yakuza flick *Branded to Kill* (1967).
The 1960s were the peak years of the *Japanese New Wave* movement, which began in the 1950s and continued through the early 1970s. Nagisa Oshima, Kaneto Shindo, Masahiro Shinoda, Susumu Hani and Shohei Imamura emerged as major filmmakers during the decade. Oshima\'s *Cruel Story of Youth*, *Night and Fog in Japan* and *Death by Hanging*, along with Shindo\'s *Onibaba*, Hani\'s *Kanojo to kare* and Imamura\'s *The Insect Woman*, became some of the better-known examples of Japanese New Wave filmmaking. Documentary played a crucial role in the New Wave, as directors such as Hani, Kazuo Kuroki, Toshio Matsumoto, and Hiroshi Teshigahara moved from documentary into fiction film, while feature filmmakers like Oshima and Imamura also made documentaries. Shinsuke Ogawa and Noriaki Tsuchimoto became the most important documentarists: \"two figures \[that\] tower over the landscape of Japanese documentary.\"
| 1,218 |
Cinema of Japan
| 4 |
10,790 |
# Cinema of Japan
## History
### 20th century {#th_century}
#### Golden Age {#golden_age}
Teshigahara\'s *Woman in the Dunes* (1964) won the Special Jury Prize at the Cannes Film Festival, and was nominated for Best Director and Best Foreign Language Film Oscars. Masaki Kobayashi\'s *Kwaidan* (1965) also picked up the Special Jury Prize at Cannes and received a nomination for Best Foreign Language Film at the Academy Awards. *Bushido, Samurai Saga* by Tadashi Imai won the Golden Bear at the 13th Berlin International Film Festival. *Immortal Love* by Keisuke Kinoshita and *Twin Sisters of Kyoto* and *Portrait of Chieko*, both by Noboru Nakamura, also received nominations for Best Foreign Language Film at the Academy Awards. *Lost Spring*, also by Nakamura, was in competition for the Golden Bear at the 17th Berlin International Film Festival.
The 1970s saw the cinema audience drop due to the spread of television. Total audience declined from 1.2 billion in 1960 to 0.2 billion in 1980. Film companies refused to hire top actors and directors, not even the companies\' production skills to the television industry, thereby making the film companies losing money.
Film companies fought back in various ways, such as the bigger budget films of Kadokawa Pictures, or including increasingly sexual or violent content and language which could not be shown on television. The resulting pink film industry became the stepping stone for many young independent filmmakers. The seventies also saw the start of the \"idol eiga\", films starring young \"idols\", who would bring in audiences due to their fame and popularity.
Toshiya Fujita made the revenge film *Lady Snowblood* in 1973. In the same year, Yoshishige Yoshida made the film *Coup d\'État*, a portrait of Ikki Kita, the leader of the Japanese coup of February 1936. Its experimental cinematography and mise-en-scène, as well as its avant-garde score by Toshi Ichiyanagi, garnered it wide critical acclaim within Japan.
In 1976, the Hochi Film Award was created. The first winner for Best Film was *The Inugamis* by Kon Ichikawa. Nagisa Oshima directed *In the Realm of the Senses* (1976), a film detailing a crime of passion involving Sada Abe set in the 1930s. Controversial for its explicit sexual content, it has never been seen uncensored in Japan.
Kinji Fukasaku completed the epic *Battles Without Honor and Humanity* series of yakuza films. Yoji Yamada introduced the commercially successful *Tora-San* series, while also directing other films, notably the popular *The Yellow Handkerchief*, which won the first Japan Academy Prize for Best Film in 1978. New wave filmmakers Susumu Hani and Shōhei Imamura retreated to documentary work, though Imamura made a dramatic return to feature filmmaking with *Vengeance Is Mine* (1979).
*Dodes\'ka-den* by Akira Kurosawa and *Sandakan No. 8* by Kei Kumai were nominated to the Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film.
The 1980s saw the decline of the major Japanese film studios and their associated chains of cinemas, with major studios Toho and Toei barely staying in business, Shochiku supported almost solely by the *Otoko wa tsurai yo* films, and Nikkatsu declining even further.
Of the older generation of directors, Akira Kurosawa directed *Kagemusha* (1980), which won the Palme d\'Or at the 1980 Cannes Film Festival, and *Ran* (1985). Seijun Suzuki made a comeback beginning with *Zigeunerweisen* in 1980. Shohei Imamura won the Palme d\'Or at the Cannes Film Festival for *The Ballad of Narayama* (1983). Yoshishige Yoshida made *A Promise* (1986), his first film since 1973\'s *Coup d\'État*.
New directors who appeared in the 1980s include actor Juzo Itami, who directed his first film, *The Funeral*, in 1984, and achieved critical and box office success with *Tampopo* in 1985. Shinji Sōmai, an artistically inclined populist director who made films like the youth-focused *Typhoon Club*, and the critically acclaimed Roman porno *Love Hotel* among others. Kiyoshi Kurosawa, who would generate international attention beginning in the mid-1990s, made his initial debut with pink films and genre horror.
During the 1980s, anime rose in popularity, with new animated movies released every summer and winter, often based upon popular anime television series. Mamoru Oshii released his landmark *Angel\'s Egg* in 1985 while Hayao Miyazaki adapted his manga series, *Nausicaä of the Valley of Wind,* into a feature film of the same name in 1984. Katsuhiro Otomo followed suit by adapting his own manga *Akira* into a feature film of the same name in 1988.
Eventually the home video made it possible to where the Japanese civilians, and eventually citizens in other countries, could watch these films individually. This would increase sales in the direct-to-video film industry, allowing for further developments, such as DVD\'s and eventual streaming services, to develop.
Mini theaters, a type of independent movie theater characterized by a smaller size and seating capacity in comparison to larger movie theaters, gained popularity during the 1980s. Mini theaters helped bring independent and arthouse films from other countries, as well as films produced in Japan by unknown Japanese filmmakers, to Japanese audiences.
| 821 |
Cinema of Japan
| 5 |
10,790 |
# Cinema of Japan
## History
### 20th century {#th_century}
#### Heisei period {#heisei_period}
Because of economic recessions, the number of movie theaters in Japan had been steadily decreasing since the 1960s. The number of cinemas was under 2,000 in 1993 compared to more than 7,000 in 1960. The 1990s saw the reversal of this trend and the introduction of the multiplex in Japan. At the same time, the popularity of mini theaters continued.
Takeshi Kitano emerged as a significant filmmaker with works such as *Sonatine* (1993), *Kids Return* (1996) and *Hana-bi* (1997), which was given the Golden Lion at the Venice Film Festival. Shōhei Imamura again won the Palme d\'Or (shared with Iranian director Abbas Kiarostami), this time for *The Eel* (1997). He became the fifth two-time recipient, joining Alf Sjöberg, Francis Ford Coppola, Emir Kusturica and Bille August.
Kiyoshi Kurosawa gained international recognition following the release of *Cure* (1997). Takashi Miike launched a prolific career with titles such as *Audition* (1999), *Dead or Alive* (1999) and *The Bird People in China* (1998). Former documentary filmmaker Hirokazu Koreeda launched an acclaimed feature career with *Maborosi* (1996) and *After Life* (1999).
Hayao Miyazaki directed two mammoth box office and critical successes, *Porco Rosso* (1992) -- which beat *E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial* (1982) as the highest-grossing film in Japan -- and *Princess Mononoke* (1997), which also claimed the top box office spot until *Titanic* (1997).
Several new anime directors rose to widespread recognition, bringing with them notions of anime as not only entertainment, but modern art. Mamoru Oshii released the internationally acclaimed philosophical science fiction action film *Ghost in the Shell* in 1996. Satoshi Kon directed the award-winning psychological thriller *Perfect Blue*. Hideaki Anno also gained considerable recognition with *The End of Evangelion* in 1997.
In the beginning of 21st century, Japan has been referenced numerous times in popular culture, which was a relatively successful one for Japanese film industry, returning to the idea of a second Japanese New Wave" in their cinematic releases. The country has appeared as a setting and topic multiple times in film, poetry, television, and music. The number of films being shown in Japan steadily increased, with about 821 films released in 2006. Films based on Japanese television series were especially popular during this period. Anime films now accounted for 60 percent of Japanese film production and would become one of the world's leading producers of animated cinema. The 1990s and 2000s are considered to be \"Japanese Cinema\'s Second Golden Age\", due to the immense popularity of anime, both within Japan and overseas.
Although not a commercial success, *All About Lily Chou-Chou* directed by Shunji Iwai was honored at the Berlin, the Yokohama and the Shanghai Film Festivals in 2001. Takeshi Kitano appeared in *Battle Royale* and directed and starred in *Dolls* and *Zatoichi*. Beginning in the late 1990s, the J-horror film genre began to boom, as films such as *Ringu,* *Kairo*, *Dark Water*, *Yogen*, the *Grudge* series and *One Missed Call* met with commercial success. In 2004, *Godzilla: Final Wars*, directed by Ryuhei Kitamura, was released to celebrate the 50th anniversary of Godzilla. In 2005, director Seijun Suzuki made his 56th film, *Princess Raccoon*. Hirokazu Koreeda claimed film festival awards around the world with two of his films *Distance* and *Nobody Knows*. Female film director Naomi Kawase\'s film *The Mourning Forest* won the Grand Prix at the Cannes Film Festival in 2007. Yoji Yamada, director of the Otoko wa Tsurai yo series, made a trilogy of acclaimed revisionist samurai films, 2002\'s *Twilight Samurai*, followed by *The Hidden Blade* in 2004 and *Love and Honor* in 2006. In 2008, *Departures* won the Academy Award for best foreign language film.
In anime, Hayao Miyazaki directed *Spirited Away* in 2001, breaking Japanese box office records and winning several awards---including the Academy Award for Best Animated Feature in 2003---followed by *Howl\'s Moving Castle* and *Ponyo* in 2004 and 2008 respectively. In 2004, Mamoru Oshii released the anime movie *Ghost in the Shell 2: Innocence* which received critical praise around the world. His 2008 film *The Sky Crawlers* was met with similarly positive international reception. Satoshi Kon also released three quieter, but nonetheless highly successful films: *Millennium Actress*, *Tokyo Godfathers*, and *Paprika*. Katsuhiro Otomo released *Steamboy*, his first animated project since the 1995 short film compilation *Memories*, in 2004. In collaboration with Studio 4C, American director Michael Arias released *Tekkon Kinkreet* in 2008, to international acclaim. After several years of directing primarily lower-key live-action films, Hideaki Anno formed his own production studio and revisited his still-popular *Evangelion* franchise with the *Rebuild of Evangelion* tetralogy, a new series of films providing an alternate retelling of the original story.
Some Hollywood directors have turned to Tokyo as a backdrop for movies set in Japan. Post-war period examples include: Tokyo Joe, My Geisha, Tokyo Story and the James Bond film You Only Live Twice; recent examples include Lost in Translation and The Last Samurai (both in 2003), Kill Bill: Volume 1 and 2 and The Day After Tomorrow (all in 2004), Memoirs of a Geisha (2005), The Fast and the Furious: Tokyo Drift and Babel (both in 2006), The Day the Earth Stood Still (2008), 2012 (2009), Inception (2010), Emperor (2012), Pacific Rim and The Wolverine (both in 2013), Geostorm (2017), and Avengers: Endgame (2019).
Since February 2000, the Japan Film Commission Promotion Council was established. On November 16, 2001, the Japanese Foundation for the Promotion of the Arts laws were presented to the House of Representatives. These laws were intended to promote the production of media arts, including film scenery, and stipulate that the government -- on both the national and local levels -- must lend aid in order to preserve film media. The laws were passed on November 30 and came into effect on December 7. In 2003, at a gathering for the Agency of Cultural Affairs, twelve policies were proposed in a written report to allow public-made films to be promoted and shown at the Film Center of the National Museum of Modern Art.
Japanese cinema has always been perceived as either having feminist male directors as well as female directors, furthering the notion of the importance of women in Japanese cinema. This is proven most profusely in 2009, where a symposium for the Nippon Connection Festival was held, which the entire meeting was devoted to women: as a subject, as female directors, and as their importance to Japanese cinema. The impact of women is seen in various film festivals, including 'Peaches,' where Japanese women graduates were allowed to display their achievements in the cinematic field willingly. Through these interpretations and diverse views of males in cinema, women have a major impact on Japanese cinema, about politically and socially: they themselves are a part of the Japanese narrative and their stories need to be studied in films for audiences to fully grasp their stories.
Four films have so far received international recognition by being selected to compete in major film festivals: *Caterpillar* by Kōji Wakamatsu was in competition for the Golden Bear at the 60th Berlin International Film Festival and won the Silver Bear for Best Actress, *Outrage* by Takeshi Kitano was In Competition for the Palme d\'Or at the 2010 Cannes Film Festival, *Himizu* by Sion Sono was in competition for the Golden Lion at the 68th Venice International Film Festival.
In March 2011, Japanese film and television industry was afflicted by the Tohoku earthquake and tsunami and the subsequent Fukushima nuclear disaster, which was greatly suffered due to ongoing triple disaster. However, many Japanese studios were officially closed or reorganized to prevent the triple disaster. As of result, many of Japanese studios began to reopen and production rates have increased.
In October 2011 (after fully reopening of Japanese film and television industry), Takashi Miike\'s *Hara-Kiri: Death of a Samurai* was In Competition for the Palme d\'Or at the 2012 Cannes Film Festival, the first 3D film ever to screen In Competition at Cannes. The film was co-produced by British independent producer Jeremy Thomas, who had successfully broken Japanese titles such as Nagisa Oshima\'s *Merry Christmas, Mr Lawrence* and *Taboo*, Takeshi Kitano\'s *Brother*, and Miike\'s *13 Assassins* onto the international stage as producer.
In 2018, Hirokazu Kore-eda won the Palme d\'Or for his movie *Shoplifters* at the 71st Cannes Film Festival, a festival that also featured Ryūsuke Hamaguchi\'s *Asako I & II* in competition.
| 1,394 |
Cinema of Japan
| 6 |
10,790 |
# Cinema of Japan
## History
### Reiwa period {#reiwa_period}
The 2020 Japanese epic disaster drama film Fukushima 50, released on 6 March 2020, directed by Setsurō Wakamatsu and written by Yōichi Maekawa. The film is based on the book by Ryusho Kadota, titled *On the Brink: The Inside Story of Fukushima Daiichi*, and it is the first Japanese film to depict the disaster.
In early 2020, the Japanese film and television industry was afflicted by the COVID-19 pandemic, which greatly suffered due to health requirements. This gave the nation its worst day of film and television industry impacted by health crises since the end of World War II. From the first (of many) \'health lockdowns\' until the end of September 2021, many Japanese studios were closed or reorganized to suit the legal requirements for spread prevention which ultimately resulted in the suspension of filming for many movies, however, it did not stop from people wanting to see movies. Despite this pandemic occurring, many films were slowly being reintroduced to Japanese cinemas, which changed how Japan would approach cinema within the following years. From 2021-2022, there was the reinstating of Japanese cinema to Japanese audiences, as theater attendance had increased from the original 54.5% from 2020, to about 78% by 2022. In 2022 alone, though there was a significant decrease from 2019's numbers, there were 590 movie theatres that were open and available to the public, allowing for the public to reengage with normal activities while being amid the pandemic.
In October 2020 (after the reopening film industry), a Japanese anime film *Demon Slayer: Mugen Train* based on the *Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba* manga series broke all box-office records in the country, becoming the highest-grossing film of all time in Japan, the highest-grossing Japanese film of all time and the highest-grossing film of 2020.
In October 2021, a Japanese drama-road film Drive My Car won Best Foreign Language Film at the 79th Golden Globe Awards and received the Academy Award for Best International Feature Film at the 94th Academy Awards.
In May 2023, a Japanese drama film Perfect Days won Best Actor and Ecumenical Jury at the 76th Cannes Film Festival. Besides that a Japanese psychological dramatic mystery thriller film Monster won Best Screenplay as well as the Queer Palm at the same festival.
In September 2023, a Japanese drama mystery film Evil Does Not Exist won Grand Jury and FIPRESCI Award at the 80th Venice International Film Festival and also awarded Best Film at the 2023 BFI London Film Festival.
Hayao Miyazaki\'s *The Boy and the Heron* and Takashi Yamazaki\'s *Godzilla Minus One* (both released in 2023) each won an award at the 96th Academy Awards and garnered critical acclaim. *The Boy and the Heron* also won Best Animated Feature Film at the 81st Golden Globe Awards, the first non-English-language animated film to do so. Likewise, *Godzilla Minus One* became the first foreign-language film to win the Academy Award for Best Visual Effects.
## Genres
- **Anime**: animated films
- **Mecha**: films featuring mecha robots
- ***Gendai-geki***: films set in the present day, the opposite of *jidaigeki*
- **Japanese horror**: horror film
- **Japanese science fiction**: science fiction film
- **Japanese cyberpunk**: cyberpunk films
- ***Kaiju***: monster films
- ***Tokusatsu***: films that make heavy use of special effects, usually involving costumed superheroes
- ***Jidaigeki***: period film set during the Edo period (1603--1868) or earlier, the opposite of *gendai-geki*
- **Samurai cinema**: films featuring swordplay, also known as *chanbara* (an onomatopoeia describing the sound of swords clashing)
- **Ninja films**: films featuring ninjas
- **Pink films**: softcore pornographic films
- ***Shomingeki***: realistic films about common working people
- **Tendency films**: socially conscious, left-leaning films
- **Yakuza films**: gangster films about yakuza mobsters
| 623 |
Cinema of Japan
| 7 |
10,790 |
# Cinema of Japan
## Box office {#box_office}
+------+---------------+-----------+---------------+-----------+
| Year | Gross\ | Domestic\ | Admissions\ | Source(s) |
| | (in billions\ | share | (in millions) | |
| | of yen) | | | |
+======+===============+===========+===============+===========+
| 2009 | 206 | 57% | 169 | |
+------+---------------+-----------+---------------+-----------+
| 2010 | 221 | 54% | 174 | |
+------+---------------+-----------+---------------+-----------+
| 2011 | 181 | 55% | 144.73 | |
+------+---------------+-----------+---------------+-----------+
| 2012 | 195.2 | 65.7% | 155.16 | |
+------+---------------+-----------+---------------+-----------+
| 2013 | 194 | 60.6% | 156 | |
+------+---------------+-----------+---------------+-----------+
| 2014 | 207 | 58% | 161 | |
+------+---------------+-----------+---------------+-----------+
| 2015 | 217.119 | 55.4% | 166
| 114 |
Cinema of Japan
| 8 |
10,798 |
# Formalist film theory
**Formalist film theory** is an approach to film theory that is focused on the formal or technical elements of a film: i.e., the lighting, scoring, sound and set design, use of color, shot composition, and editing. This approach was proposed by Hugo Münsterberg, Rudolf Arnheim, Sergei Eisenstein, and Béla Balázs. Today, formalist film theory is a recognized approach in film studies.
## Formalism in ideological approaches {#formalism_in_ideological_approaches}
### Classical Hollywood cinema {#classical_hollywood_cinema}
Classical Hollywood cinema uses a style referred to as the institutional mode of representation: continuity editing, massive coverage, three-point lighting, \"mood\" music, and dissolves. The socio-economic ideological explanation for this is style involves Hollywood\'s desire to monetarily profit and appeal to ticket-buyers.
### Film noir {#film_noir}
Film noir is marked by lower production values, darker images, under lighting, location shooting, and general nihilism. This is largely due to the pessimistic outlook filmmakers and filmgoers expressed during the war and post-war years. In the following decades, many German Expressionists immigrated to America. Their stylized lighting effects and themes of disillusionment due to the war left an impact on Film noir and classical Hollywood films
| 189 |
Formalist film theory
| 0 |
10,810 |
# Fantasy (psychology)
In psychoanalytic theory, **fantasy** is a broad range of mental experiences, mediated by the faculty of imagination in the human brain, and marked by an expression of certain desires through vivid mental imagery. Fantasies are generally associated with scenarios that are impossible or unlikely to happen.
Sexual fantasies are a common type of fantasy.
## Conscious fantasy {#conscious_fantasy}
In everyday life, individuals often find their thoughts \"pursue a series of fantasies concerning things they wish they could do or wish they had done \... fantasies of control or of sovereign choice \... daydreams.\"`{{specify|date=January 2019|reason=All citation, all direct quote?}}`{=mediawiki}
George Eman Vaillant in his study of defence mechanisms took as a central example of \"an immature defence \... *fantasy* --- living in a \'Walter Mitty\' dream world where you imagine you are successful and popular, instead of making real efforts to make friends and succeed at a job.\"
Other researchers and theorists`{{specify|date=January 2019|reason=What researchers, what theorists? Current sources (post-1946) needed}}`{=mediawiki} find that fantasy has beneficial elements --- providing \"small regressions and compensatory wish fulfilments which are recuperative in effect.\" Research by Deirdre Barrett reports that people differ radically in the vividness, as well as frequency of fantasy, and that those who have the most elaborately developed fantasy life are often the people who make productive use of their imaginations in art, literature, or by being especially creative and innovative in more traditional professions.
## Freud and fantasy {#freud_and_fantasy}
According to Sigmund Freud, a fantasy is constructed around multiple, often repressed wishes, and employs disguise to mask and mark the very defensive processes by which desire is enacted. The subject\'s desire to maintain distance from the repressed wish and simultaneously experience it opens up a type of third person syntax allowing for multiple entry into the fantasy. Therefore, in fantasy, vision is multiplied---it becomes possible to see from more than one position at the same time, to see oneself and to see oneself seeing oneself, to divide vision and dislocate subjectivity. This radical omission of the \"I\" position creates space for all those processes that depend upon such a center, including not only identification but also the field and organization of vision itself.
For Freud, sexuality is linked from the very beginning to an object of fantasy. However, \"the object to be rediscovered is not the lost object, but its substitute by displacement; the lost object is the object of self-preservation, of hunger, and the object one seeks to re-find in sexuality is an object displaced in relation to that first object.\"`{{Page needed|date=January 2024}}`{=mediawiki} This initial scene of fantasy is created out of the frustrated infants\' deflection away from the instinctual need for milk and nourishment towards a phantasmization of the mothers\' breast, which is in close proximity to the instinctual need. Now bodily pleasure is derived from the sucking of the mother\'s breast itself. The mouth that was the original source of nourishment is now the mouth that takes pleasure in its own sucking. This substitution of the breast for milk and the breast for a phantasmic scene represents a further level of mediation which is increasingly psychic. The child cannot experience the pleasure of milk without the psychic re-inscription of the scene in the mind. \"The finding of an object is in fact a re-finding of it.\"`{{Page needed|date=January 2024}}`{=mediawiki} It is in the movement and constant restaging away from the instinct that desire is constituted and mobilized.
## Freud and daydreams {#freud_and_daydreams}
A similarly positive view of fantasy was taken by Sigmund Freud who considered fantasy (*Fantasie*) a defence mechanism. He considered that men and women \"cannot subsist on the scanty satisfaction which they can extort from reality. \'We simply cannot do without auxiliary constructions,\' as Theodor Fontane once said \... \[without\] dwelling on imaginary wish fulfillments.\" As childhood adaptation to the reality principle developed, so too \"one species of thought activity was split off; it was kept free from reality-testing and remained subordinated to the pleasure principle alone. This activity is *fantasying* \... continued as *day-dreaming*.\" He compared such phantasising to the way a \"nature reserve preserves its original state where everything \... including what is useless and even what is noxious, can grow and proliferate there as it pleases.\"
Daydreams for Freud were thus a valuable resource. \"These day-dreams are cathected with a large amount of interest; they are carefully cherished by the subject and usually concealed with a great deal of sensitivity \... such phantasies may be unconscious just as well as conscious.\" He considered these fantasies to include a great deal of the true constitutional essence of a personality, and that the energetic man \"is one who succeeds by his efforts in turning his wishful phantasies into reality,\" whereas the artist \"can transform his phantasies into artistic creations instead of into symptoms \... the doom of neurosis.\"
| 804 |
Fantasy (psychology)
| 0 |
10,810 |
# Fantasy (psychology)
## Klein and unconscious fantasy {#klein_and_unconscious_fantasy}
Melanie Klein extended Freud\'s concept of fantasy to cover the developing child\'s relationship to a world of internal objects. In her thought, this kind of \"play activity inside the person is known as \'unconscious phantasy\' (deliberately spelled with \'ph\' to distinguish it from the word \'fantasy\'). And these phantasies are often very violent and aggressive. They are different from ordinary day-dreams or \'fantasies\'.\"
The term \"fantasy\" became a central issue with the development of the Kleinian group as a distinctive strand within the British Psycho-Analytical Society, and was at the heart of the so-called controversial discussions of the wartime years. \"A paper by Susan Isaacs (1952) on \'The nature and function of Phantasy\' \... has been generally accepted by the Klein group in London as a fundamental statement of their position.\" As a defining feature, \"Kleinian psychoanalysts regard the unconscious as made up of phantasies of relations with objects. These are thought of as primary and innate, and as the mental representations of instincts \... the psychological equivalents in the mind of defence mechanisms.\"
Isaacs considered that \"unconscious phantasies exert a continuous influence throughout life, both in normal and neurotic people, the difference lying in the specific character of the dominant phantasies.\" Most schools of psychoanalytic thought would now accept that both in analysis and life, we perceive reality through a veil of unconscious phantasy. Isaacs however claimed that \"Freud\'s \'hallucinatory wish-fulfilment\' and his \'introjection\' and \'projection\' are the basis of the fantasy life,\" and how far unconscious phantasy was a genuine development of Freud\'s ideas, how far it represented the formation of a new psychoanalytic paradigm, is perhaps the key question of the controversial discussions.
| 285 |
Fantasy (psychology)
| 1 |
10,810 |
# Fantasy (psychology)
## Lacan, fantasy, and desire {#lacan_fantasy_and_desire}
Lacan engaged from early on with \"the phantasies revealed by Melanie Klein \... the *imago* of the mother \... this shadow of the *bad internal objects*\" --- with the Imaginary. Increasingly, however, it was Freud\'s idea of fantasy as a kind of \"screen-memory, representing something of more importance with which it was in some way connected\" that was for him of greater importance. Lacan came to believe that \"the phantasy is never anything more than the screen that conceals something quite primary, something determinate in the function of repetition.\"
Phantasies thus both link to and block off the individual\'s unconscious, his kernel or real core: \"subject and real are to be situated on either side of the split, in the resistance of the phantasy\", which thus comes close to the centre of the individual\'s personality and its splits and conflicts. \"The subject situates himself as determined by the phantasy \... whether in the dream or in any of the more or less well-developed forms of day-dreaming;\" and as a rule \"a subject\'s fantasies are close variations on a single theme \... the \'fundamental fantasy\' \... minimizing the variations in meaning which might otherwise cause a problem for desire.\"
The goal of therapy thus became \"*la traversée du fantasme*, the crossing over, traversal, or traversing of the fundamental fantasy.\" For Lacan, \"The traversing of fantasy involves the subject\'s assumption of a new position with respect to the Other as language and the Other as desire \... a utopian moment beyond neurosis.\" The question he was left with was \"What, then, does he who has passed through the experience \... who has traversed the radical phantasy \... become?.\"
## The *fantasy principle* {#the_fantasy_principle}
The postmodern intersubjectivity of the 21st century has seen a new interest in fantasy as a form of interpersonal communication. Here, we are told, \"We need to go beyond the pleasure principle, the reality principle, and repetition compulsion to \... the *fantasy principle* - not, as Freud did, reduce fantasies to wishes \... \[but consider\] all other imaginable emotions\" and thus envisage emotional fantasies as a possible means of moving beyond stereotypes to more nuanced forms of personal and social relating.
Such a perspective \"sees emotions as central to developing fantasies about each other that are not determined by collective \'typifications\'.\"
## In mental disorders {#in_mental_disorders}
### Narcissistic personality disorder {#narcissistic_personality_disorder}
Two diagnostic criteria narcissistic personality disorder are:
- A pervasive pattern of grandiosity (in fantasy or behavior)
- A preoccupation with fantasies of unlimited success, power, brilliance, beauty, or ideal love.
### Schizophrenia
Fantasy is a common symptom`{{Clarification needed|reason=It is unclear, judging by this text, how fantasy is pathological in the case of schizophrenia. Fantasy is rather common anyway, and is not seen as a major symoptom indicative of schizophrenia.|date=May 2025}}`{=mediawiki} in individuals with schizophrenia;`{{Better source needed|reason=The current source is insufficiently reliable ([[WP:NOTRS]]). The source is very old. Use modern sources, according to [[WP:MEDRS]].|date=May 2025}}`{=mediawiki} they depict specific patterns of high-neurological activities in their brains\' default mode network, which possibly constitute the biomarker of these fantasies
| 517 |
Fantasy (psychology)
| 2 |
10,815 |
# Franc
The **franc** is any of various units of currency. One franc is typically divided into 100 centimes. The name is said to derive from the Latin inscription *francorum rex* (King of the Franks) used on early French coins and until the 18th century, or from the French *franc*, meaning \"frank\" (and \"free\" in certain contexts, such as *coup franc*, \"free kick\").
The countries that use francs today include Switzerland, Liechtenstein, and most of Francophone Africa. The Swiss franc is a major world currency today due to the prominence of Swiss financial institutions.
Before the introduction of the euro in 1999, francs were also used in France, Belgium and Luxembourg, while Andorra and Monaco accepted the French franc as legal tender (Monégasque franc). The franc was also used in French colonies including Algeria and Cambodia. The franc is sometimes Italianised or Hispanicised as the *franco*, for instance in Luccan franco.
## Origins
The franc was originally a French gold coin of 3.87 g minted in 1360 on the occasion of the release of King John II (\"the Good\"), held by the English since his capture at the Battle of Poitiers four years earlier. It was equivalent to one *livre tournois* (Tours pound).
## French franc {#french_franc}
The French franc was originally a gold coin issued in France from 1360 until 1380, then a silver coin issued between 1575 and 1641. The franc finally became the national currency from 1795 until 1999 (franc coins and notes were legal tender until 2002). Though abolished as a legal coin by King Louis XIII in 1641 in favor of the gold louis and silver écu, the term franc continued to be used in common parlance for the livre tournois. The franc was also minted for many of the former French colonies, such as Morocco, Algeria, French West Africa, and others. Today, after independence, many of these countries continue to use the franc as their standard denomination.
The value of the French franc was locked to the euro at 1 euro = 6.55957 FRF on 31 December 1998, and after the introduction of the euro notes and coins, ceased to be legal tender after 28 February 2002, although they were still exchangeable at banks until 19 February 2012.
## CFA and CFP francs {#cfa_and_cfp_francs}
Fourteen African countries use the franc CFA (in west Africa, *Communauté financière africaine*; in equatorial Africa, *Coopération financière en Afrique centrale*), originally (1945) worth 1.7 French francs and then from 1948, 2 francs (from 1960: 0.02 new franc) but after January 1994 worth only 0.01 French franc. Therefore, from January 1999, 1 CFA franc is equivalent to €0.00152449.
A separate (franc CFP) circulates in France\'s Pacific territories, worth €0.0084 (formerly 0.055 French franc).
## Comorian franc {#comorian_franc}
In 1981, the Comoros established an arrangement with the French government similar to that of the CFA franc. Originally, 50 Comorian francs were worth 1 French franc. In January 1994, the rate was changed to 75 Comorian francs to the French franc. Since 1999, the currency has been pegged to the euro.
| 509 |
Franc
| 0 |
10,815 |
# Franc
## Belgian franc and Luxembourg franc {#belgian_franc_and_luxembourg_franc}
The conquest of most of western Europe by Revolutionary and Napoleonic France led to the franc\'s wide circulation. Following independence from the Kingdom of the Netherlands, the new Kingdom of Belgium in 1832 adopted its own Belgian franc, equivalent to the French one, followed by Luxembourg adopting the Luxembourgish franc in 1848 and Switzerland in 1850. Newly unified Italy adopted the lira on a similar basis in 1862.
In 1865, France, Belgium, Switzerland and Italy created the Latin Monetary Union (to be joined by Spain and Greece in 1868): each would possess a national currency unit (franc, lira, peseta, drachma) worth 4.5 g of silver or `{{val|0.290322|u=g}}`{=mediawiki} of gold (fine), all freely exchangeable at a rate of 1:1. In the 1870s the gold value was made the fixed standard, a situation which was to continue until 1914.
In 1926, Belgium as well as France experienced depreciation and an abrupt collapse of confidence, leading to the introduction of a new gold currency for international transactions, the *belga* of 5 francs, and the country\'s withdrawal from the monetary union, which ceased to exist at the end of the year. The 1921 monetary union of Belgium and Luxembourg survived and formed the basis for full economic union in 1932.
Like the French franc, the Belgian and Luxembourg francs ceased to exist on 1 January 1999, when they became fixed at 1 EUR = 40.3399 BEF/LUF, thus a Belgian or Luxembourg franc was worth €0.024789. Old franc coins and notes lost their legal tender status on 28 February 2002.
One Luxembourg franc was equal to one Belgian franc. Belgian francs were legal tender inside Luxembourg, and Luxembourg francs were legal tender in the whole of Belgium. (In reality, Luxembourg francs were only accepted as means of payment by shops and businesses in the Belgian province of Luxembourg adjacent to the independent Grand Duchy of Luxembourg, this for historical reasons.)
The equivalent name of the Belgian franc in Dutch and German, Belgium\'s other official languages, was *frank*. As mentioned before, in Luxembourg the franc was called *Frang* (plural *Frangen*) in Luxembourgish.
## Swiss franc and Liechtenstein franc {#swiss_franc_and_liechtenstein_franc}
The Swiss franc (ISO code: CHF or 756; *Franken*; *franco*), which appreciated significantly against the new European currency from April to September 2000, remains one of the world\'s strongest currencies, worth `{{as of|2023|8|lc=y}}`{=mediawiki} just over one euro. The Swiss franc is used in Switzerland and in Liechtenstein. Liechtenstein retains the ability to mint its own currency, the Liechtenstein franc, which it does from time to time for commemorative or emergency purposes.
The name of the country \"Swiss Confederation\" is found on some of the coins in Latin (*Confoederatio Helvetica*), as Switzerland has four official languages, all of which are used on the notes. The denomination is abbreviated \"Fr.\" on the coins which is the abbreviation in all four languages.
## Saar franc {#saar_franc}
The Saar franc, linked at par to the French franc, was introduced in the Saar Protectorate in 1948. On 1 January 1957, the territory joined the Federal Republic of Germany, nevertheless, in its new member state of Saarland, the Saar franc continued to be the currency until 6 July 1959.
The name of the Saar franc in German, the main official language in the Protectorate, was *Franken*. Coins displaying German inscriptions and the coat of arms of the Protectorate were circulated and used together with French francs. As banknotes, only French franc bills existed
| 579 |
Franc
| 1 |
10,821 |
# Francium
**Francium** is a chemical element; it has symbol **Fr** and atomic number 87. It is extremely radioactive; its most stable isotope, francium-223 (originally called *actinium K* after the natural decay chain in which it appears), has a half-life of only 22 minutes. It is the second-most electropositive element, behind only caesium, and is the second rarest naturally occurring element (after astatine). Francium\'s isotopes decay quickly into astatine, radium, and radon. The electronic structure of a francium atom is \[Rn\] 7s^1^; thus, the element is classed as an alkali metal.
As a consequence of its extreme instability, bulk francium has never been seen. Because of the general appearance of the other elements in its periodic table column, it is presumed that francium would appear as a highly reactive metal if enough could be collected together to be viewed as a bulk solid or liquid. Obtaining such a sample is highly improbable since the extreme heat of decay resulting from its short half-life would immediately vaporize any viewable quantity of the element.
Francium was discovered by Marguerite Perey in France (from which the element takes its name) on January 7, 1939. Before its discovery, francium was referred to as *eka-caesium* or *ekacaesium* because of its conjectured existence below caesium in the periodic table. It was the last element first discovered in nature, rather than by synthesis.`{{NoteTag|Some synthetic elements, like [[technetium]] and [[plutonium]], have later been found in nature.}}`{=mediawiki} Outside the laboratory, francium is extremely rare, with trace amounts found in uranium ores, where the isotope francium-223 (in the family of uranium-235) continually forms and decays. As little as 1 oz exists at any given time throughout the Earth\'s crust; aside from francium-223 and francium-221, its other isotopes are entirely synthetic. The largest amount produced in the laboratory was a cluster of more than 300,000 atoms.
| 305 |
Francium
| 0 |
10,821 |
# Francium
## Characteristics
Francium is one of the most unstable of the naturally occurring elements: its longest-lived isotope, francium-223, has a half-life of only 22 minutes. The only comparable element is astatine, whose most stable natural isotope, astatine-219 (the alpha daughter of francium-223), has a half-life of 56 seconds, although synthetic astatine-210 is much longer-lived with a half-life of 8.1 hours. All isotopes of francium decay into astatine, radium, or radon. Francium-223 also has a shorter half-life than the longest-lived isotope known of each element up to and including element 105, dubnium.
Francium is an alkali metal whose chemical properties mostly resemble those of caesium. A heavy element with a single valence electron, it has the highest equivalent weight of any element. Liquid francium---if created---should have a surface tension of 0.05092 N/m at its melting point. Francium\'s melting point was estimated to be around 8.0 C; a value of 27 C is also often encountered. The melting point is uncertain because of the element\'s extreme rarity and radioactivity; a different extrapolation based on Dmitri Mendeleev\'s method gave 20 ±. A calculation based on the melting temperatures of binary ionic crystals gives 24.861 ±. The estimated boiling point of 620 C is also uncertain; the estimates 598 C and 677 C, as well as the extrapolation from Mendeleev\'s method of 640 C, have also been suggested. The density of francium is expected to be around 2.48 g/cm^3^ (Mendeleev\'s method extrapolates 2.4 g/cm^3^).
Linus Pauling estimated the electronegativity of francium at 0.7 on the Pauling scale, the same as caesium; the value for caesium has since been refined to 0.79, but there are no experimental data to allow a refinement of the value for francium. Francium has a slightly higher ionization energy than caesium, 392.811(4) kJ/mol as opposed to 375.7041(2) kJ/mol for caesium, as would be expected from relativistic effects, and this would imply that caesium is the less electronegative of the two. Francium should also have a higher electron affinity than caesium and the Fr^−^ ion should be more polarizable than the Cs^−^ ion.
| 344 |
Francium
| 1 |
10,821 |
# Francium
## Compounds
As a result of francium\'s instability, its salts are only known to a small extent. Francium coprecipitates with several caesium salts, such as caesium perchlorate, which results in small amounts of francium perchlorate. This coprecipitation can be used to isolate francium, by adapting the radiocaesium coprecipitation method of Lawrence E. Glendenin and C. M. Nelson. It will additionally coprecipitate with many other caesium salts, including the iodate, the picrate, the tartrate (also rubidium tartrate), the chloroplatinate, and the silicotungstate. It also coprecipitates with silicotungstic acid, and with perchloric acid, without another alkali metal as a carrier, which leads to other methods of separation.
### Francium perchlorate {#francium_perchlorate}
Francium perchlorate is produced by the reaction of francium chloride and sodium perchlorate. The francium perchlorate coprecipitates with caesium perchlorate. This coprecipitation can be used to isolate francium, by adapting the radiocaesium coprecipitation method of Lawrence E. Glendenin and C. M. Nelson. However, this method is unreliable in separating thallium, which also coprecipitates with caesium. Francium perchlorate\'s entropy is expected to be 42.7 e.u (178.7 J mol^−1^ K^−1^).
### Francium halides {#francium_halides}
Francium halides are all soluble in water and are expected to be white solids. They are expected to be produced by the reaction of the corresponding halogens. For example, francium chloride would be produced by the reaction of francium and chlorine. Francium chloride has been studied as a pathway to separate francium from other elements, by using the high vapour pressure of the compound, although francium fluoride would have a higher vapour pressure.
### Other compounds {#other_compounds}
Francium nitrate, sulfate, hydroxide, carbonate, acetate, and oxalate, are all soluble in water, while the iodate, picrate, tartrate, chloroplatinate, and silicotungstate are insoluble. The insolubility of these compounds are used to extract francium from other radioactive products, such as zirconium, niobium, molybdenum, tin, antimony, the method mentioned in the section above. Francium oxide is believed to disproportionate to the peroxide and francium metal. The CsFr molecule is predicted to have the heavier element (francium) at the negative end of the dipole, unlike all known heterodiatomic alkali metal molecules. Francium superoxide (FrO~2~) is expected to have a more covalent character than its lighter congeners; this is attributed to the 6p electrons in francium being more involved in the francium--oxygen bonding. The relativistic destabilisation of the 6p~3/2~ spinor may make francium compounds in oxidation states higher than +1 possible, such as \[Fr^V^F~6~\]^−^; but this has not been experimentally confirmed.
| 407 |
Francium
| 2 |
10,821 |
# Francium
## Isotopes
There are 37 known isotopes of francium ranging in atomic mass from 197 to 233.`{{NUBASE2020|ref}}`{=mediawiki} Francium has seven metastable nuclear isomers. Francium-223 and francium-221 are the only isotopes that occur in nature, with the former being far more common.
Francium-223 is the most stable isotope, with a half-life of 21.8 minutes, and it is highly unlikely that an isotope of francium with a longer half-life will ever be discovered or synthesized. Francium-223 is a fifth product of the uranium-235 decay series as a daughter isotope of actinium-227; thorium-227 is the more common daughter. Francium-223 then decays into radium-223 by beta decay (1.149 MeV decay energy), with a minor (0.006%) alpha decay path to astatine-219 (5.4 MeV decay energy).
Francium-221 has a half-life of 4.8 minutes. It is the ninth product of the neptunium decay series as a daughter isotope of actinium-225. Francium-221 then decays into astatine-217 by alpha decay (6.457 MeV decay energy). Although all primordial ^237^Np is extinct, the neptunium decay series continues to exist naturally in tiny traces due to (n,2n) knockout reactions in natural ^238^U. Francium-222, with a half-life of 14 minutes, may be produced as a result of the beta decay of natural radon-222; this process has nonetheless not yet been observed, and it is unknown whether this process is energetically possible.`{{NoteTag|AME2020 gives <sup>222</sup>Rn a lower mass than <sup>222</sup>Fr,{{AME2020 II|ref}} which would forbid single beta decay, though it is possible within the given error margin and is explicitly predicted by Belli et al.<ref name=BelliBaF2>{{cite journal |last1=Belli |first1=P. |last2=Bernabei |first2=R. |last3=Cappella |first3=C. |last4=Caracciolo |first4=V. |last5=Cerulli |first5=R. |last6=Danevich |first6=F.A. |last7=Di Marco |first7=A. |last8=Incicchitti |first8=A. |last9=Poda |first9=D.V. |last10=Polischuk |first10=O.G. |last11=Tretyak |first11=V.I. |title=Investigation of rare nuclear decays with BaF<sub>2</sub> crystal scintillator contaminated by radium |date=2014 |journal=European Physical Journal A |volume=50 |issue=9 |pages=134–143 |doi=10.1140/epja/i2014-14134-6 |arxiv=1407.5844|bibcode=2014EPJA...50..134B |s2cid=118513731 }}</ref>}}`{=mediawiki}
The least stable ground state isotope is francium-215, with a half-life of 90 ns:`{{NUBASE2020|ref}}`{=mediawiki} it undergoes a 9.54 MeV alpha decay to astatine-211.
## Applications
Due to its instability and rarity, there are no commercial applications for francium. It has been used for research purposes in the fields of chemistry and of atomic structure. Its use as a potential diagnostic aid for various cancers has also been explored, but this application has been deemed impractical.
Francium\'s ability to be synthesized, trapped, and cooled, along with its relatively simple atomic structure, has made it the subject of specialized spectroscopy experiments. These experiments have led to more specific information regarding energy levels and the coupling constants between subatomic particles. Studies on the light emitted by laser-trapped francium-210 ions have provided accurate data on transitions between atomic energy levels which are fairly similar to those predicted by quantum theory. Francium is a prospective candidate for searching for CP violation.
| 456 |
Francium
| 3 |
10,821 |
# Francium
## History
As early as 1870, chemists thought that there should be an alkali metal beyond caesium, with an atomic number of 87. It was then referred to by the provisional name *eka-caesium*.
### Erroneous and incomplete discoveries {#erroneous_and_incomplete_discoveries}
In 1914, Stefan Meyer, Viktor F. Hess, and Friedrich Paneth (working in Vienna) made measurements of alpha radiation from various substances, including ^227^Ac. They observed the possibility of a minor alpha branch of this nuclide, though follow-up work could not be done due to the outbreak of World War I. Their observations were not precise and sure enough for them to announce the discovery of element 87, though it is likely that they did indeed observe the decay of ^227^Ac to ^223^Fr.
Soviet chemist Dmitry Dobroserdov was the first scientist to claim to have found eka-caesium, or francium. In 1925, he observed weak radioactivity in a sample of potassium, another alkali metal, and incorrectly concluded that eka-caesium was contaminating the sample (the radioactivity from the sample was from the naturally occurring potassium radioisotope, potassium-40). He then published a thesis on his predictions of the properties of eka-caesium, in which he named the element *russium* after his home country. Shortly thereafter, Dobroserdov began to focus on his teaching career at the Polytechnic Institute of Odesa, and he did not pursue the element further.
The following year, English chemists Gerald J. F. Druce and Frederick H. Loring analyzed X-ray photographs of manganese(II) sulfate. They observed spectral lines which they presumed to be of eka-caesium. They announced their discovery of element 87 and proposed the name *alkalinium*, as it would be the heaviest alkali metal.
In 1930, Fred Allison of the Alabama Polytechnic Institute claimed to have discovered element 87 (in addition to 85) when analyzing pollucite and lepidolite using his magneto-optical machine. Allison requested that it be named *virginium* after his home state of Virginia, along with the symbols Vi and Vm . In 1934, H.G. MacPherson of UC Berkeley disproved the effectiveness of Allison\'s device and the validity of his discovery.
In 1936, Romanian physicist Horia Hulubei and his French colleague Yvette Cauchois also analyzed pollucite, this time using their high-resolution X-ray apparatus. They observed several weak emission lines, which they presumed to be those of element 87. Hulubei and Cauchois reported their discovery and proposed the name *moldavium*, along with the symbol Ml, after Moldavia, the Romanian province where Hulubei was born. In 1937, Hulubei\'s work was criticized by American physicist F. H. Hirsh Jr., who rejected Hulubei\'s research methods. Hirsh was certain that eka-caesium would not be found in nature, and that Hulubei had instead observed mercury or bismuth X-ray lines. Hulubei insisted that his X-ray apparatus and methods were too accurate to make such a mistake. Because of this, Jean Baptiste Perrin, Nobel Prize winner and Hulubei\'s mentor, endorsed moldavium as the true eka-caesium over Marguerite Perey\'s recently discovered francium. Perey took pains to be accurate and detailed in her criticism of Hulubei\'s work, and finally she was credited as the sole discoverer of element 87. All other previous purported discoveries of element 87 were ruled out due to francium\'s very limited half-life.
| 526 |
Francium
| 4 |
10,821 |
# Francium
## History
### Perey\'s analysis {#pereys_analysis}
Eka-caesium was discovered on January 7, 1939, by Marguerite Perey of the Curie Institute in Paris, when she purified a sample of actinium-227 which had been reported to have a decay energy of 220 keV. Perey noticed decay particles with an energy level below 80 keV. Perey thought this decay activity might have been caused by a previously unidentified decay product, one which was separated during purification, but emerged again out of the pure actinium-227. Various tests eliminated the possibility of the unknown element being thorium, radium, lead, bismuth, or thallium. The new product exhibited chemical properties of an alkali metal (such as coprecipitating with caesium salts), which led Perey to believe that it was element 87, produced by the alpha decay of actinium-227. Perey then attempted to determine the proportion of beta decay to alpha decay in actinium-227. Her first test put the alpha branching at 0.6%, a figure which she later revised to 1%.
Perey named the new isotope *actinium-K* (it is now referred to as francium-223) and in 1946, she proposed the name *catium* (Cm) for her newly discovered element, as she believed it to be the most electropositive cation of the elements. Irène Joliot-Curie, one of Perey\'s supervisors, opposed the name due to its connotation of *cat* rather than *cation*; furthermore, the symbol coincided with that which had since been assigned to curium. Perey then suggested *francium*, after France. This name was officially adopted by the International Union of Pure and Applied Chemistry (IUPAC) in 1949, becoming the second element after gallium to be named after France. It was assigned the symbol Fa, but it was revised to the current Fr shortly thereafter. Francium was the last element discovered in nature, rather than synthesized, following hafnium and rhenium. Further research into francium\'s structure was carried out by, among others, Sylvain Lieberman and his team at CERN in the 1970s and 1980s.
## Occurrence
^223^Fr is the result of the alpha decay of ^227^Ac and can be found in trace amounts in uranium minerals. In a given sample of uranium, there is estimated to be only one francium atom for every 1 × 10^18^ uranium atoms. Only about 1 oz of francium is present naturally in the earth\'s crust.
| 380 |
Francium
| 5 |
10,821 |
# Francium
## Production
Francium can be synthesized by a fusion reaction when a gold-197 target is bombarded with a beam of oxygen-18 atoms from a linear accelerator in a process originally developed at the physics department of the State University of New York at Stony Brook in 1995. Depending on the energy of the oxygen beam, the reaction can yield francium isotopes with masses of 209, 210, and 211.
: ^197^Au + ^18^O → ^209^Fr + 6 n
: ^197^Au + ^18^O → ^210^Fr + 5 n
: ^197^Au + ^18^O → ^211^Fr + 4 n
\| alt1 = A round ball of red light surrounded by a green glow \| caption1 = Image of light emitted by a sample of 200,000 francium atoms in a magneto-optical trap \| image2 = Fr,87.jpg \| width2 = 150 \| alt2 = A small white spot in the middle surrounded by a red circle. There is a yellow ring outside the red circle, a green circle beyond the yellow ring and a blue circle surrounding all the other circles. \| caption2 = Heat image of 200,000 francium atoms in a magneto-optical trap, around 100 attograms \| footer = }} The francium atoms leave the gold target as ions, which are neutralized by collision with yttrium and then isolated in a magneto-optical trap (MOT) in a gaseous unconsolidated state. Although the atoms only remain in the trap for about 30 seconds before escaping or undergoing nuclear decay, the process supplies a continual stream of fresh atoms. The result is a steady state containing a fairly constant number of atoms for a much longer time. The original apparatus could trap up to a few thousand atoms, while a later improved design could trap over 300,000 at a time. Sensitive measurements of the light emitted and absorbed by the trapped atoms provided the first experimental results on various transitions between atomic energy levels in francium. Initial measurements show very good agreement between experimental values and calculations based on quantum theory. The research project using this production method relocated to TRIUMF in 2012, where over 10^6^ francium atoms have been held at a time, including large amounts of ^209^Fr in addition to ^207^Fr and ^221^Fr.
Other synthesis methods include bombarding radium with neutrons, and bombarding thorium with protons, deuterons, or helium ions.
^223^Fr can also be isolated from samples of its parent ^227^Ac, the francium being milked via elution with NH~4~Cl--CrO~3~ from an actinium-containing cation exchanger and purified by passing the solution through a silicon dioxide compound loaded with barium sulfate.
In 1996, the Stony Brook group trapped 3000 atoms in their MOT, which was enough for a video camera to capture the light given off by the atoms as they fluoresce. Francium has not been synthesized in amounts large enough to weigh
| 467 |
Francium
| 6 |
10,830 |
# Football team
A **football team** is a group of players selected to play together in the various team sports known as football. Such teams could be selected to play in a match against an opposing team, to represent a **football club**, group, state or nation, an all-star team or even selected as a hypothetical team (such as a dream team or team of the century) and never play an actual match.
The difference between a football team and a football club is incorporation, a football club is an entity which is formed and governed by a committee and has members which may consist of supporters in addition to players. The benefit of club formation is that it gives teams access to additional volunteer or paid support staff, facilities and equipment.
## Summary
There are several varieties of football, including association football, gridiron football, Australian rules football, Gaelic football, rugby league and rugby union. The number of players selected for each team, within these varieties and their associated codes, can vary substantially. Sometimes, the word \"team\" may be limited to those who play on the field in a match and does not always include other players who may take part as replacements or emergency players. \"Football squad\" may be used to be inclusive of these support and reserve players.
The words team and club are sometimes used interchangeably by supporters, typically referring to the team within the club playing in the highest division or competition. A football club is a type of sports club which is an organized or incorporated body. Typically these will have a committee, secretary, president, or chairperson, registrar and members. Football clubs typically have a set of rules, including rules under which they play and are themselves typically members of a league or association which are affiliated with a governing body within their sport. Clubs may field multiple teams from their registered players (which may participate in several different divisions or leagues). A club is responsible for ensuring the continued existence of its teams in their respective competitions. The oldest football clubs date back to the early 19th century. While records exist for most incorporated clubs, they do not exist for all football clubs. Standalone clubs are usually run like businesses and appear on official registers. However many football clubs were formed as part of larger organisations (schools, athletic clubs, societies) and therefore public records of their formation and operation may not be kept unless they compete with other teams. Football clubs may also be dormant for periods and be re-formed (for example going into recess for reasons such as war or lack of a league or competition to participate in) and even switch between football codes. Likewise, a football club may fold if it becomes insolvent or is incapable of fielding a team to play matches
| 471 |
Football team
| 0 |
10,834 |
# Food preservation
thumb\|upright=1.5\|alt=Man holding a small pastry inside plastic wrappings\|A food scientist is preparing a meal for astronauts in space. **Food preservation** includes processes that make food more resistant to microorganism growth and slow the oxidation of fats. This slows down the decomposition and rancidification process. Food preservation may also include processes that inhibit visual deterioration, such as the enzymatic browning reaction in apples after they are cut during food preparation. By preserving food, food waste can be reduced, which is an important way to decrease production costs and increase the efficiency of food systems, improve food security and nutrition and contribute towards environmental sustainability. For instance, it can reduce the environmental impact of food production.
Many processes designed to preserve food involve more than one food preservation method. Preserving fruit by turning it into jam, for example, involves boiling (to reduce the fruit\'s moisture content and to kill bacteria, etc.), sugaring (to prevent their re-growth) and sealing within an airtight jar (to prevent recontamination).
Different food preservation methods have different impacts on the quality of the food and food systems. Some traditional methods of preserving food have been shown to have a lower energy input and carbon footprint compared to modern methods. Some methods of food preservation are also known to create carcinogens.
## Traditional techniques {#traditional_techniques}
Some techniques of food preservation pre-date the dawn of agriculture. Others were discovered more recently.
### Boiling
Boiling liquids can kill any existing microbes. Milk and water are often boiled to kill any harmful microbes that may be present in them.
### Burial
Burial of food can preserve it due to a variety of factors: lack of light, lack of oxygen, cool temperatures, pH level, or desiccants in the soil. Burial may be combined with other methods such as salting or fermentation. Most foods can be preserved in soil that is very dry and salty (thus a desiccant) such as sand, or soil that is frozen.
Many root vegetables are very resistant to spoilage and require no other preservation than storage in cool dark conditions, for example by burial in the ground, such as in a storage clamp (not to be confused with a root cellar). Cabbage was traditionally buried during autumn in northern US farms for preservation. Some methods keep it crispy while other methods produce sauerkraut. A similar process is used in the traditional production of kimchi.
Sometimes meat is buried under conditions that cause preservation. If buried on hot coals or ashes, the heat can kill pathogens, the dry ash can desiccate, and the earth can block oxygen and further contamination. If buried where the earth is very cold, the earth acts like a refrigerator, or, in areas of permafrost, a freezer.
In Odisha, India, it is practical to store rice by burying it underground. This method helps to store for three to six months during the dry season.
Butter and similar substances have been preserved as bog butter in Irish peat bogs for centuries. Century eggs are traditionally created by placing eggs in alkaline mud (or other alkaline substance), resulting in their \"inorganic\" fermentation through raised pH instead of spoiling. The fermentation preserves them and breaks down some of the complex, less flavorful proteins and fats into simpler, more flavorful ones.
### Canning
*Main article: Canning* `{{See also|Home canning}}`{=mediawiki} Canning involves cooking food, sealing it in sterilized cans or jars, and boiling the containers to kill or weaken any remaining bacteria as a form of sterilization. It was invented by the French confectioner Nicolas Appert. By 1806, this process was used by the French Navy to preserve meat, fruit, vegetables, and even milk. Although Appert had discovered a new way of preservation, it was not understood until 1864 when Louis Pasteur found the relationship between microorganisms, food spoilage, and illness.
Foods have varying degrees of natural protection against spoilage and may require that the final step occurs in a pressure cooker. High-acid fruits like strawberries require no preservatives to can and only a short boiling cycle, whereas marginal vegetables such as carrots require longer boiling and the addition of other acidic elements. Low-acid foods, such as vegetables and meats, require pressure canning. Food preserved by canning or bottling is at immediate risk of spoilage once the can or bottle has been opened.
Lack of quality control in the canning process may allow ingress of water or micro-organisms. Most such failures are rapidly detected as decomposition within the can cause gas production and the can will swell or burst. However, there have been examples of poor manufacture (underprocessing) and poor hygiene allowing contamination of canned food by the obligate anaerobe *Clostridium botulinum*, which produces an acute toxin within the food, leading to severe illness or death. This organism produces no gas or obvious taste and remains undetected by taste or smell. Its toxin is denatured by cooking, however. Cooked mushrooms, when handled poorly and then canned, can support the growth of *Staphylococcus aureus*, which produces a toxin that is not destroyed by canning or subsequent reheating.
### Confit
Meat can be preserved by salting it, cooking it at or near 100 C in some kind of fat (such as lard or tallow), and then storing it immersed in the fat. These preparations were popular in Europe before refrigerators became ubiquitous. They are still popular in France, where the term originates. The preparation will keep longer if stored in a cold cellar or buried in cold ground.
| 908 |
Food preservation
| 0 |
Subsets and Splits
No community queries yet
The top public SQL queries from the community will appear here once available.